An exhibition tracing the vision behind Herzog & de Meuron's ten selected projects in China will open on September 12, 2026, at the M+ Museum in Hong Kong. The exhibition marks the museum's fifth anniversary; since opening, M+ has built its collection around visual art, design and architecture, moving image, and Hong Kong visual culture from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The museum building, designed by Herzog & de Meuron between 2012 and 2021, is located in the city's West Kowloon Cultural District (WestK), a cultural hub spanning forty hectares alongside Victoria Harbour. "Herzog & de Meuron: In Focus" is curated by Ikko Yokoyama and Iris Ng and reviews projects dating from 2002 to 2021, including Tai Kwun in Hong Kong (2006–2018) and the National Stadium in Beijing (2002–2008).
The exhibition marks the second phase of Herzog & de Meuron's donation to the M+ Collections, building on the first contribution of a section model of the Beijing National Stadium (2002–2008), known as the 'Bird's Nest', in 2023. On this occasion, the office provided the museum with more than 200 process materials, including models, prototypes, sketches, and archival items. "Herzog & de Meuron: In Focus" shows the material behind ten built and unbuilt projects from the early 2000s, marking the firm's sustained participation in China's growth and urban transformation through landmark cultural and civic projects including museums, academic institutions, sports stadiums and city master plans.
The objects and replicas are displayed in wooden vitrines developed for the firm's open storage of archival holdings in Basel, Switzerland, in a design inspired by the firm's Kabinett. Kabinett is a foundation established in 2015 by Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron as a permanent repository of architectural thinking and knowledge for research and exchange. The process and archival materials provided by the architects are intended to give the public an overview of each building's response to site, materials, and cultural context. The exhibition brings together models, drawings, material samples and prototypes donated to the M+ Collection to "offer a closer look into the perspectives that shape the firm's architectural imagination."
Focusing on ten pivotal projects in China, this exhibition traces both the evolving creative vision that defines Herzog & de Meuron's practice and the wider transformation of China's urban landscape. The open-storage display, inspired by the Kabinett, repositions the gallery as a space for discovery and dialogue. By showcasing the models, materials, methods, and research of these important architectural projects, we invite visitors to explore the experimentation and decision-making behind each work, from early ideas to built form. ― Ikko Yokoyama, Senior Curator, Head of Design and Architecture at M+
The exhibition will be on view from September 12, 2026, to January 2027 at the M+ Focus Gallery. The museum will also organize an architecture tour throughout the exhibition period for visitors to discover the museum's distinctive architectural features and design highlights. Also in China, Shanghai's Power Station of Art (PSA) will host the country's first exhibition dedicated to the work of Brazilian architect Lina Bo Bardi, designed by OPEN Architecture in a 2,300 m² space of the PSA contemporary art museum in Huangpu. In Australia, OPEN Architecture also joined OMA/AMO in designing one of the opening exhibitions of Powerhouse Parramatta, the first state cultural organization located in Western Sydney. On a larger scale, the 9th edition of the Oslo Architecture Triennale will take place from September 17 to October 1, bringing together more than 30 international architecture projects around the question "What if Nature Comes First?"
