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Ants portrayed on pharmaceutical bottles at the Today Art Musuem.[Photo:CRIENGLISH.com]

Last year's solo exhibition for Jannis Kounellis was an impressive event, bringing a key member of the Arte Povera movement to Beijing. The Czech artist's work pushed art classification to its limit while providing Beijingers insight into how sound and painting could be harmoniously integrated.

"We're independent economically so we're free to choose the projects that we think we should do," said Xu. "We don't need to listen to anybody. We're free to make our own choices, and that's very, very important to a museum."

Funding for up to 70 exhibits a year comes from a variety of sources, though much of it is from companies such as Mercedes Benz, Hermes or Credit Suisse. These companies, according to Xu, are familiar with contemporary art and understand the value it can bring to their image.

High profile exhibitions are particularly useful at drawing in curious newcomers, providing opportunities to learn about art. "It's our duty to create more opportunities for the general public to know about art, and for them to come into the museum and bring their kids," asserted Xu. "There's not so many ways to know about art, especially contemporary art. It's like something that has nothing to do with daily life for a normal person like a taxi driver.

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