He Xiangning Art Museum stands as China’s first national art museum that is named solely in honor of an individual. Approved by the Central Government of China, the construction project of the He Xiangning Art Museum was launched in Shenzhen on May 13th, 1995. The museum had its official opening on April 18th, 1997, with its title inscribed by Mr. Jiang Zemin, who was then the General Secretary of
the Chinese Communist Party and the President of China. The primary mission of the He Xiangning Art Museum is to support the collecting, exhibiting and research activities of He Xiangning's art and relevant documents. It also pay attention to the creation of overseas Chinese artists, women artists as well as emerging young artists. In addition, the museum focuses on preserving and cataloging important art historical documents, and it is committed to creating a platform upon which the exchanges between contemporary art worlds in China and outside as well as the development of art theories are enabled. Since its establishment, the He Xiangning Art Museum has made its name as a leading art institution in China with its core programs such as the He Xiangning Art Museum Academic Forum and the Voice of Humanities: Academic Lecture at the He Xiangning Art Museum; ground-breaking exhibitions such as the Thematic Exhibition of He Xiangning's Art, the Tour Exhibition of Selected Works by He Xiangning, the Shenzhen International Exhibition of Contemporary Sculpture, the Annual Exhibition of Dissertation Works in Painting From National Art Academies Across China, Across-strait Four-Region Artistic Exchange Project and the Overseas Chinese Invitational Exhibition. He Xiangning Art Museum set up OCT Contemporary Art Terminal (OCAT) in 2005, which integrates national and international resources for contemporary art and serves as a space where contemporary art from China meets contemporary art from the world. From 2005 to 2012, He Xiangning Art Museum has supported OCAT with its academic endeavor. The He Xiangning Art Museum has been actively operating as an important art institution in China's frontier special zone of reform and open-door policies with its great contributions to promoting the art of He Xiangning, Chinese contemporary art and dialogues between Chinese and international art. With its great endeavors over the past decade, the He Xiangning Art Museum has built great influence in China's art world, academia and society, and has created a new image and model of art museum that is remarkable for its emphasis on contemporaneity, scholarship and knowledge. Its influence is gradually reaching the international world of art museums.
