Published : 17/04/2026
Red brick walls, arched garden walkways and a courtyard café — where exactly are we? This is Beijing's Red Brick Art Museum, where a varied exhibition programme sits alongside some of the city's most photogenic corners.
From its blue-grey brick courtyards and red-tiled roofs to a dramatic hall with an almost amphitheatre-like feel, the museum offers plenty to see both on and off the gallery walls. A stroll through the complex is likely to involve as much photographing as art-viewing.
The symmetrical interior structure creates myriad pattern variations
Located in Chaoyang district, Beijing, the Red Brick Art Museum covers around 20,000 square metres, including exhibition galleries and landscaped gardens.
The museum has nine exhibition spaces and two public leisure areas, along with facilities such as a children's activity room, a multi-purpose hall and artist studios. Conceived by collectors Yan Shijie and Cao Mei and developed over eight years, the museum opened in May 2014 after an investment of nearly RMB 400 million.
Red brick is both the museum's defining material and one of its main attractions. Using red and grey brick, the design introduces patterned variations across corridors, ceilings and windows through a disciplined use of symmetry and repetition.
One of the most striking spaces is the hall, whose top-lit design gives it something of an amphitheatre feel, with soft daylight falling into the space below.
Standing at its centre and looking up at the vaulted brickwork, visitors get a full sense of the museum's unusual grandeur — and why it has become one of the site's most popular photo spots.
As visitors move through the museum's corridors and galleries, one of the most striking features is the architect's thoughtful use of natural light.
Skylights, narrow windows and perforated brickwork help brighten the interiors while producing dramatic, ever-changing patterns of light and shadow. It is little surprise that these spaces have become some of the museum's most photographed corners.
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A retro-style café with a warm welcome
Not to be missed is the museum's characterful café, Red Brick Yard, set within its landscaped courtyard. Covering about 150 square metres, it can seat around 60 to 80 guests, offering a quiet spot to pause between exhibitions.
Visitors can settle into old-style wooden armchairs sourced from local collections, order a coffee and a sandwich, and ease into a leisurely afternoon. Nearby, the Red Brick Yard restaurant sits beside the museum's central lake area and spans about 300 square metres. The ground floor offers scenic seating, while the upper floor has an open-air terrace and booth seating for more than 100 diners.
Now firmly established as one of Beijing's cultural landmarks, the Red Brick Art Museum has also earned industry recognition, including a place among the top 30 in the 2019 Beijing Brand Plan's "New Forces in Cultural Branding" and the title of "Museum of the Year" on the 2018 Art Power List.
For anyone planning a trip to Beijing, it is well worth seeking out — a lesser-known but memorable spot where art, architecture and photogenic charm come together.
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