The Suzhou Museum of Contemporary Art, designed by the Danish architectural firm BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group), is set to open in 2026. Located on the shores of Lake Jinji in Suzhou, Jiangsu, China, the museum is the first completed project by BIG in the country. The museum consists of 12 pavilions connected by a continuous roof that resembles a ribbon. The design draws inspiration from traditional Suzhou gardens, particularly the "lang" (廊), or covered corridor, which is reinterpreted as a network of exhibition spaces. The museum is designed to be a flexible, modular space that can adapt to temporary exhibitions and the changing seasons. Visitors can move through a continuous path that links galleries, meeting places, and cultural spaces, while also exploring secondary paths between exhibitions. Bridges and tunnels, both above and below ground, connect the pavilions and allow for a seamless flow between the city and the lake. Before its official opening, the museum invited the public to preview its spaces through a series of exhibitions. One of these was Materialism, an exhibition by BIG that explored the use of different materials—from stone to recycled materials—in the firm's architectural projects. The exhibition featured models and project models from around the world, highlighting the role of material in shaping the firm's creative vision. Now open to the public, the museum hosts a variety of exhibitions that cover modern and contemporary art, technology-based artistic practices, and the exchange of ideas between Eastern and Western artistic traditions. Among the highlights are an exhibition dedicated to Pablo Picasso and a large retrospective of contemporary Chinese art. According to Bjarke Ingels, the founder of BIG, the museum is situated between the city and Lake Jinji. A newly built Ferris wheel partially obscures the view of the lake, but the museum is designed to connect the city and the water rather than act as a barrier. The building is structured like a traditional Chinese garden, with interconnected galleries spread across the site like pavilions in a park. This design allows residents to pass through the sculpture gardens to reach the lake, while water flows between the pavilions and into the city. From above, the museum resembles a traditional endless knot, intertwining at the base of the Ferris wheel and extending toward the heart of the lake. Ingels sees the project as both a tribute to local heritage and a reflection of Suzhou's "ancestral future," highlighting the technical sophistication and quality of construction now common in Chinese architecture. The museum combines Western and Eastern spatial traditions through a deliberate contrast. From above, it evokes traditional craftsmanship, with paper-cut patterns framing the gardens below and transforming Suzhou's heritage into a work of art. As visitors descend into the museum, the distinction between figure and background becomes less clear. The gardens appear to merge, unfolding into a sequence of spaces, perspectives, artworks, and natural elements. Catherine Huang, an associate at BIG, describes this as an experience of exploration and discovery, where the precise layout from above transforms into a dynamic journey at ground level. Wang Xiaosong, the executive director of the Suzhou Museum of Contemporary Art, expressed his pleasure in welcoming visitors to the museum. He described it as a place of discovery and exchange, where people can experience art in a new light and engage with ideas from diverse cultures and generations. Through its exhibitions and public programs, the museum aims to become a key cultural destination in Suzhou, attracting visitors from near and far.