798 Art District
Good for: an engaging walk, solo travelers, couple, art, souvenirs
Not good for: eating, when it's freezing cold
- Address
- 2 & 4 Jiuxianqiao Lu
- Phone
- 010 6438 4862
- Price
- admission free
- Hours
- galleries 10am-6pm, some closed Mon, bars & bistros open longer
Lonely Planet review for 798 Art District
A disused and converted electronics factory built by the East Germans, 798 Art District is Běijīng’s leading concentration of contemporary art galleries. The industrial complex celebrates its proletarian roots in the communist heyday of the 1950s via retouched red Maoist slogans decorating gallery interiors and statues of burly, lantern-jawed workers. The voluminous factory workshops are ideally suited to art galleries that require space for multimedia installations and other ambitious projects. You could easily spend a day visiting the complex and its cafes and restaurants, making 798’s noncentral inaccessibility less of an inconvenience and more of an opportunity for an outing. Some galleries are more innovative than others; there is challenging and cutting-edge work, but prepare also for hackneyed and technically unaccomplished material. Worth browsing are Long March Space ([tel]6438 7107; www.longmarchspace.com; [hours]11am-7pm Tue-Sun), with paintings, photos, installations and videos, and the well-known Chinese Contemporary Beijing (Zhōngguó Dāngdài; [tel]8456 2421; www.chinesecontemporary.com; 4 Jiuxianqiao Lu; [hours]11am-7pm). Other worthwhile galleries include Contrasts Gallery ([tel]6432 1369; [hours]10am-6pm Tue-Sun) and Běijīng Tokyo Art Projects (Běijīng Dōngjīng Yìshù Gōngchéng; [tel]8457 3245; www.tokyo-gallery.com; 4 Jiuxianqiao Lu) – a huge space exhibiting conceptual art – and the excellent 798 Photo Gallery (Bǎinián Yìnxiàng; [tel]6438 1784; www.798photogallery.cn; 4 Jiuxianqiao Lu), with its intriguing prints from the Cultural Revolution and thematic photographic exhibitions. Timezone 8 is the place for art and design books. There are several cafes when your legs tire. Cave Café (Dòngfáng Kāfēi; [tel]5978 9516) does a fine cuppa and has a unique diversion on its foyer wall – a hand-inscribed dedication from Lin Biao, Mao’s chosen successor who mysteriously died in a plane crash. A further extensive colony of art galleries can be found around 3km northeast of 798 Art District at Cǎochǎngdì (草场地).
Traveller reviews for 798 Art District (5)
-
-
best place in Beijing to appreciate the arts
topchinatravel recommends this,
My girlfriend and I went 798 Art District last year, My girlfriend loves it so much, she is a shutterbug and she took a lot of pictures, many of the arts are very peculiar, Sometimes I didn't understand what those amazing arts try to present, I am not that interested in arts, anyway, and it is really a good to go in Beijing. I know there is another good place like 798 Art District in Shanghai, it is M50 Creative Garden, and it also very amazing. You won’t miss them in those two cities
-
One of my favourite palces in Beijing
simsima recommends this,
I live close to the area (by the way, map here is not very accurate), it's nice place to spend afternoon going through the galleries and buying small souvenirs that are not that overpriced. The must visit is UCCA center - they usually have different exhibitions and installations (but is one of a few galleries that you have to pay for ~20RMB). For most of the friends that come to visit I say it is "a must visit place" even if you are not "into that kind of stuff" :)
To get there, from the city center you might waste a lot of time on the traffic, so if you live close to line 10 or 13, better take a cab from Lianmaqiao or Sanyuanqiao station and just say 798 (qi jiu ba 七九八).
Just a bit north of 798, there's also alternative art place called Caochangdi（草场地）which is more artsy, less developed, more local, and I would say for people who are more "into that kind of stuff) :)
Good for: an engaging walk
Not good for: eating
-
My favorite thing I've done in Beijing
alh728 recommends this,
It's a huge area including some former Mao-era factories turned into an artist colony. In addition to some people trying to sell you art on the street, there are also all kinds of proper galleries. For example, I saw shows from North Korea, from Cuba, and from a Chinese-Austrian partnership. There are also various shops around there. You can buy art books, smaller works of art, all kinds of Mao kitsch stuff, and other miscellaneous things. Lots of cafes and restaurants too. As you walk from one exhibit to the next, you'll also pass lots of sculptures and graffiti outside. One of the former factories in 798 is also a venue for dance parties, like on Halloween (Yen Club). Overall a really cool place for modern art, especially since so many other things to do in Beijing involve the ancient or traditional aspects.
Good for: art, souvenirs, solo travelers, couple
Not good for: when it's freezing cold
-
coolest communist experience
fraggleistic recommends this,
I'm not joking. all the prices are set so don't bother walking around trying to find cheaper prices on food and fun treasures. It leaves more time to walk around and see awesome art. A lot of the art is in your face and peculiar. Bring a camera. A lot of the art is interactive too. The cafes are peaceful and a lot of people get professional photos there. I even saw a tattoo shop!
-
inspirational
crazyhat123 recommends this,
A collection of free thinkers and modern artists. No cars are allowed in, so you can walk freely from gallery to gallery without the stress of cars and motorbikes. The galleries are inspiring and the cafes are relaxing.
Good for: art books, modern art, inspiration, peaceful cafes, private art lessons
Advertisement
Activities to book
Nearby things to do and see
Advertisement
