Receiving the consent from the Central Government, He Xiangning Art Museum began its construction on May 13, 1995 and opened its door on April 18, 1997. As the first national-level art museum named after a person, its name was autographed by Jiang Zemin, the then General Secretary of Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee.

Occupying a floor space of over 5,000 m2, He Xiangning Art Museum renders a graceful and solemn look with the hues of grey and white. The unadorned, tasteful simplicity gives expression to a modernity that rises from the thickness of traditional culture and further exemplifies He Xiangning’s character. The three-storey structure houses the main and auxiliary exhibition halls, multi-function auditorium, public education zone, storerooms of collections and archives, library, framing room, offices, conference room, café, book bar and other facilities.

Taking the collection, exhibition and study of He’s artworks and archives as its underlying mission, He Xiangning Art Museum is academically positioned to curate, display, collect and study outstanding artistic outcomes in the genres of traditional art, art by overseas Chinese and female artists, and to collate and preserve relevant archives and records on the corresponding art histories, with parallel emphasis on introducing and promoting Chinese and international contemporary art via exchange programs.

Since its inception, He Xiangning Art Museum, as a public art institution committed to propagating and promoting He’s world of art and contemporary art, has built an academic brand centering on programs of “He Xiangning Art Display”, “Shenzhen International Contemporary Sculpture Exhibition”, “Academic Forum of He Xiangning Art Museum”, “Voice of Humanism: Academic Lecture of He Xiangning Art Museum”, “Annual Exhibition of Dissertation Works in Painting from National Art Academies Across China”, “Cross-Strait, Four-Region Art Exchange Program” and “Invitational Exhibition of Overseas Chinese”. Another milestone was set in 2005 when OCT Contemporary Art Terminal (OCAT) was established to integrate Chinese and international resources of contemporary art to boost the integration of Chinese contemporary art with the international community.

Over two decades of unremitting efforts have elevated the art museum into a high intellectual standing with both contemporary and academic relevance that is widely acclaimed in the Chinese community of art, academia and society at large and positively reputed in the international circle.