Shanghai Art Museum

Lonely Planet review

Venue of the Shanghai Biennale, this excellent museum is particularly worth a visit for its location within the former British racecourse club building next to Renmin Park. Refreshingly cool in summer, the interior galleries - arranged over three floors - are perfectly suited to appreciating art, with well-illuminated alcoves and a voluminous sense of space.

It's also worth noting the ceiling details and other period features, including the horse-head design on the balustrades and the Art Deco chandeliers, original to the 1933 building. A variety of art exhibitions and retrospectives are held here, ranging from modern oils to traditional art, although prepare for some dreary creations. Despite the number of foreign visitors, English captions are sporadic at best and the audio tour doesn't come in English.