An easy way to find out about current and upcoming exhibitions is to consult the numerous free English-language magazines. Here is our collection of museums and galleries.

Ancient Observatory 古观象台
This observatory was built in 1446 on a watchtower that was part of the city wall. The wall has vanished and today this Ming dynasty relic is surrounded by gleaming skyscrapers and busy highways creating a photo-friendly architectural contrast. The observatory has displays of rare stargazing instruments including some given to the emperor by Jesuit monks in the 17th century.
Address: 2 Dongbiaobei Hutong, Jianguomenwai, Chaoyang District 东城区建国门外东裱褙胡同2号
Phone: 6512 8923
Opening hours: 9am to 5pm, peak-season; 9am to 4pm, off-season
￥: 10

Beijing Tokyo Art Projects 北京东京艺术工程
This gallery hosts exhibits of Japanese and Chinese artists that have drawn rave reviews. It is located in the now-fashionable 798 District in Dashanzi, an area of reconverted factories which, like New York’s SOHO, is full of new galleries, bars and restaurants.
Address: 4 Jiuxianqiao Lu, Dashanzi Art District, Chaoyang District 朝阳区大山子艺术区酒仙桥路4号
Phone: 8457 3245
Opening hours: 10am to 6:30pm Tuesday to Sunday
￥: Free
Website: www.tokyo-gallery.com

China Millenium Monument Art Museum 中华世纪坛艺术馆
Underneath the China Millenium Monument (the large sundial), this gallery holds a potpourri of interesting exhibits running the gamut from Jingdezhen pottery to modern art.
Address: 9A Fuxing Lu, Haidian District 海淀区复兴路甲9号
Phone: 6851 3322
Opening hours: 8:30am to 5:30pm

￥: 30
Website: www.bj2000.org.cn

CourtYard Gallery 四合院画廊
Located in the basement of a pricey fusion restaurant, this gallery hosts shows of prominent contemporary Chinese artists.
Address: Basement, 95 Donghuamen Da Jie, Dongcheng District, (near the East Gate of the Forbidden City) 东城区东华门大街95号地下一层,故宫东门附近
Phone: 6526 8882
Opening hours: 11am to 7pm Monday to Saturday；12pm to 7pm on Sunday (If you’re eating in the restaurant, you can poke in after hours.)

￥: Free
Website: www.courtyard-gallery.com

National Art Museum of China 中国美术馆
Recently refurbished, the National Museum of China has a vast permanent collection of modern art from China and abroad.
Address: 1 Wusi Da Jie, Dongcheng District (near the northern end of Wangfujing) 东城区五四大街1号, 王府井北端
Phone: 6401 7076
Opening hours: 9am to 4pm

￥: 20

Song Qingling Residence 宋庆龄故居
The home of a rich aristocrat during the Qing dynasty, this lush compound with pavilions and waterways is a window onto China’s past, when only imperial courtiers were allowed to build homes on the shores of Houhai Lake. The renovated buildings, decorated in vintage 1960’s style, are preserved as a museum honoring Song Qingling, who lived there from 1963 to 1981. Educated in the US, Song married Dr. Sun Yat-sen, the founder of the Republic of China, and she herself became vice-president of the People’s Republic of China.
Address: 46 Houhai Bei Yan, Xicheng District 西城区后海北沿46号
Phone: 6404 4205
Opening hours: 9am to 4:30pm, peak-season; 9am to 4pm, off-season
￥: 20

The Red Gate Gallery 红门画廊
Occupying the 1st and 4th floors of a Ming dynasty watchtower, the Red Gate is one of the coolest exhibition spaces in the world. Curator Brian Wallace organizes cutting edge contemporary art shows. After your visit, walk west along the old city walls or go north to the Ancient Observatory.
Address: Dongbianmen Watchtower, Chongwenmen Dong Da Jie, Chongwen District 崇文区东大街东便门角楼
Phone: 6525 1005
Opening hours: 10am to 5pm

￥: Free
Website: www.redgategallery.com

Yanhuang Art Museum 炎黄艺术馆

The Yanhuang Art Museum is located in the Asian Games Village and is the first large-scale, modern art museum voluntarily built by the public. The architecture fuses the national style of China with more modern stylistic features. All its facilities are of world-class quality. It mainly collects the paintings of the present age, although some ancient paintings, calligraphy, and cultural relics are also stored or on display. Also collected are hundreds of pieces of painted pottery, ceramic figurines, and folk crafts.

Address: No.9 Huizhong Road, Asian Games Village 朝阳区亚运村惠中路9号

Phone: 649129020

Opening hours: 9:00 -16: 00

Chinese Military Museum 中国军事博物馆

The Chinese Military Museum is located near the Yuyuan Pool (the Deep Jade Pool). Its structural area takes up about 6,000 square metres and its exhibition area is more than 4,000 square metres. In the central hall of the museum stands a white, marble statue of Mao Zedong that stands four metres high. There are four pairs of exhibition halls, including sections on the Second Civil Revolutionary War, the War of Resistance Against Japan, the Third Civil Revolutionary War, and protecting socialism. The weapons exhibited in the Arms Hall include those from ancient China, weapons used by the People’s Liberation Army during the war of liberation, those used or captured on the country’s frontiers or coast and weapons made exclusively by China. The content is full and accurate.

Address: No. 9 Fuxing Road, Haidian District 海淀区复兴路9号

Phone: 6618 4080

Opening hours: 8:30-16:30

Chinese Science and Technology Museum 中国科技馆

The Chinese Science and Technology Museum opened to the public in 1988 and is located northwest of Anhua Bridge on the North Third Ring Road in Beijing. It is the first all-round state-controlled science and technology museum in China. The museum covers more than 53,000 metres and exhibits 700 items. The “Ancient Chinese Traditional Technology Exhibition” displays some of the technologies and processes China is most famous for inventing, such as paper making and porcelain. In the “Modern Technology Hall” there are several exhibits explaining the theories that underlie modern scientific thought and some important equipment that we use today. There are huge models of the universe, an exhibit explaining how a chronometer works, and lots of information about telluric physics. The “Science and Technology Hall” has a large vaulted ceiling that acts as a movie screen. A film about science today is regularly shown.

Address: Anhua Bridge, North Third Ring Road 三环路安华桥

Phone: 62371177

Opening hours: 9:00-16:00