"How we work together in China to create museums: Cross-cultural museum architecture" by Dr. Geuntae Park

Abstract:

China has witnessed remarkable museum growth over the past decade, driven by its economic development and policy support. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the number of museums in China increased from 3,069 in 2012 to 6,091 in 2022—an average of 302 new museums per year, or nearly one new museum every day. This boom has established China as a prime platform for architects and designers. A distinctive feature of this phenomenon has been the collaboration between European and Chinese professionals (architects, designers, and consultants).

This talk will explore these cross-cultural collaborations through interviews with three European professionals: two from architecture firms and one founding director of a museum, involved in the Bao’an Public Culture and Art Center (Shenzhen), the Zhuhai Museum (Zhuhai), and the Sea World Culture and Arts Center (Shenzhen). Through these conversations, the talk will unveil the challenges in forming these partnerships and outline the contributions from the European side. Finally, it will propose a framework for interpreting China's rapid museum growth.

Biography:

Dr. Geuntae Park is an associate professor at the School of Culture and Creativity, Beijing Normal-Hong Kong Baptist University (BNBU) in Zhuhai, China. He was a curator for architecture at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea, which is the only national museum dedicated to arts, design, and architecture in the country. He curated the Young Architects Program from 2014 to 2016 and worked on a couple of renowned Korean architects’ exhibitions (Jong Soung Kimm and Tai Soo Kim). Before joining BNBU, he was an associate professor at the School of Art and Design, Guangdong University of Technology. His research interests cover museum planning, exhibition development, cultural space and industries, culture and urban strategy, museum and heritage management, and public art/architecture in Asian contexts. He has published articles in Cultural Trends, Curator: Museum Journal, Museum Worlds: Advances in Research, The Design Journal, and International Journal of Arts Management and is currently working on a monograph about adaptive reuse of industrial heritage for creative industry parks in China.