In 2011, it was selected as "China's Three Most Unmissable Museums" by CNN GO, a cnn-owned website of CNN, alongside the National Museum of China and the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum in Xi'an.
Shanghai Museum of Glass, located in the northeast corner of Shanghai, the traffic is not very convenient. Even so, my son and I have been there as many as 5 times.
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<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="7" > adventure park that allows children to fully discharge</h1>
Every time we come here, we need to stay all day because there are so many interesting things.
There is no "serious face" of the traditional museum, which is different from the general historical display, here only a few incisions in the close relationship between glass and humans are selected, concisely guiding the audience into the glass world, and each booth is set up with small organs that can be interacted to encourage children to take the initiative to explore, which can catch the child's heart at once.
The coolest corner on the first floor of the main building is a huge mural that occupies almost half of the exhibition hall. Murals are full of interesting questions, such as "How hot can glass be?" "How fine can glass be?" "How hard can glass be"? "Can glass generate electricity?" Wait a minute.
▲ Giant exploration mural
To find the answer, the child has to pull open the hidden secret door to find. Every time he arrived here, his son couldn't walk, and although he had played it countless times, he still enjoyed it.
The second floor of the main building is a very open space, and the beams and roof of the old glass factory have been completely preserved. The best thing is that the location of the high-temperature kiln in the original factory has been transformed into a large interactive screen called "Fusion". This place can definitely arouse everyone's enthusiasm, whether it is my son or me, I can't help but wave and jump in front of it, and the high-temperature molten liquid image on the screen will accurately respond to any shape we have, and the scene is full of sense!
▲ The second floor space of the main building and the interactive installation of "Fusion"
The museum's experience courses are also very rich, and children of all sizes can find the right project to make a unique glass work. The son can only choose some low-difficulty projects, such as mosaic music boxes or glass beads. Relatively speaking, the production of lamp glass and hot blown glass requires higher skills, and every time the son will always lie on the glass of the workshop and watch the old man leave for half a day.
▲ Create your own unique glass work
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<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="28" > the only museum for children in Shanghai and even China</h1>
Every time he came, his son's must-have option was the Children's Glass Museum, which was hidden in the museum. This pavilion space of more than 2,000 square meters is tailor-made for children aged 4-10 years old.
The entire museum is designed to explore and interact, at the entrance you can get a copy of the "Leyou Interactive Manual" and a beautiful pen, as long as you follow the manual to find A to Z game, you can walk around the whole museum, and at the same time you can get countless cold knowledge about glass. It is more like a paradise, full of amazement and laughter, and the son is fully engaged in every time he plays, and the corners and corners are not spared, and he is not tired of watching.
▲ Diss Highlight Ball at the entrance and the Play Interactive Handbook
The last time we went, we were also pleasantly surprised to find that after the renovation of the children's hall, an indoor sports field was added, and the high roof and open space of the old factory were very suitable for children to run and jump.
▲ New indoor sports field
Outside the door of the Children's Glass Museum is my favorite area, there is an outdoor play area built for the little ones, and it is also a place where my son and I can completely liberate. He could have fun, and I was on a bench next to me drinking coffee and gasping for air. And the facilities throughout the area maintain a high aesthetic standard, which is both pleasing to the eye and safe and secure.
▲ Open and beautiful outdoor children's play area
In addition to the Children's Glass Museum, there is also a "reserved program" for sons , the giant glass maze. The labyrinth covers an area of 450 square meters, consisting of 318 pieces of black mirror glass and mirrors, and entering the maze is like walking into an endless cube dream, accompanied by the sound of fine bells, which is tense and exciting.
Before entering the maze, the children will be excited to receive the "task": while looking for a way out, they also need to find 8 different shapes of steel printing machines, mark the corresponding position of the card, and after the full can be issued a small certificate of "maze master".
This maze will be better experienced with fewer people, so you can try to brush it as soon as you arrive in the morning, and there will be more people in the afternoon.
▲ Magical glass maze and stamp graphic collection cards
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<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="53" > where glass dances on stage</h1>
After lunch, we usually choose to go to the "Heat Theater" to see a show, where our legs and feet are rested and our eyes are satisfied. At present, there are two plays that take turns, namely "Dream" and "Wanderer", both of which are about 35 minutes long.
The high-temperature kiln for firing glass was put on the stage, and the skilled glass technicians explored the "extreme feeling" of glass with a "crazy" way of operation, and the whole process was gripping. Not only is it visually beautiful, but the silent lines on the screen are also poetic.
"The Wanderer" is particularly recommended in the two plays, fireballs, galaxies, rockets, and astronauts, which are all very popular elements for children. However, it is not recommended to sit too close to the stage, and the visual or auditory impact is still somewhat large.
▲ "Wanderer" and "Dream"
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<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="64" > shoot a beautiful picture of the circle of friends</h1>
When this museum was built, "beauty" was the most important principle. Adhering to the tenet of "eating delicious shots first, and looking at good shots first", the super photo punch point in the museum park is definitely not to be missed.
1, the façade of the main building: the black façade of the main building is full of mysteries, the special material of the U-shaped glass is engraved with Chinese, English, French, German four languages, seemingly garbled text is actually related to glass related to various terms.
▲ The façade of the main building
2, kaleidoscope entrance: the entrance to the main hall of cross-sectional stainless steel folding composition of kaleidoscope, kaleidoscope can be said to be the most intuitive and interesting form of children's contact with glass materials.
▲The kaleidoscope entrance of the main building
3. Rainbow Bridge: Connecting the main hall and the new design hall is a rainbow bridge with colorful lights, and the colorful gradient glass covered bridge and the trees outside the window are intertwined with a colorful light and shadow.
▲The enchanting light and shadow made of rainbow bridge stained glass
4. Rainbow Auditorium: Replace all the walls with colorful glass, and feel the colorful light and different artistic atmosphere in the interior of the circular auditorium.
▲ 360-degree circular rainbow auditorium
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<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="86" > the educational base for "bear children"</h1>
There are two special exhibits here that I will surely talk to my son about.
One is an exhibit called "Folding". In 2013, two children spanned a one-meter hurdle and pulled and rocked a piece called "Angels Waiting," a gift that Chinese artist Xue Lu had spent two years and three months firing for her daughter with a special technique, folding her originally symmetrical wings.
Another piece is the stunning glass castle. In 2020, two children bumped into display cases during a fight, causing the glass castle to be misplaced and damaged to some degree. This fantastic glass castle contains nearly 30,000 parts and was built by the Arribas artist brothers over 500 hours with a special lightworking process.
▲ "Angel with broken wings" and the castle when it is not broken
I also admired the attitude of the museum, not only did not issue an "eviction order" to the "bear children", but instead preserved the works in a damaged appearance. Let parents have the opportunity to let their children understand the importance of exhibition etiquette in vivid scenes.
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<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="99" > museum that will continue to grow</h1>
Shanghai Museum of Glass was born from Shanghai Glass Instrument Factory No. 1, the main creators before the establishment of the museum, traveled to hundreds of mature museums in the Western world, only the text design took 2 years, and then experienced 5 years of construction.
The reason why I have been able to brush it so many times is that the museum has been changing since it opened in 2011. There are new projects every 1-2 years, and in accordance with international practice, the old settings are regularly overhauled and upgraded. What's even more amazing is that it even developed a 20-year development strategy in 2018. Like a child, this museum continues to grow, and it is always fresh to visit every once in a while.
▲ Facilities that are constantly iterating
Having said all this, I really can't spoil it anymore, so let's brush it up myself!
Visiting information
Address: No. 685 Changjiang West Road, Baoshan District, Shanghai (self-driving is recommended)
Opening hours: Tuesday to Friday 10:00-17:00, weekends and holidays 10:00-18:00, Heat Theatre daily 13:00/16:00
Ticket prices for each museum: 80 yuan for single museum tickets, 120 yuan for joint tickets for three museums, 180 yuan for park passes, and 60 yuan for thermal theaters
Experience course: DIY project 68 yuan / 128 yuan; lampmaker 268 yuan; hot melt 268 yuan; hot blow 380 yuan
Bus line: You can take Metro Line 1 to Tonghe Xincun Station, transfer to Bus 726, 95 to the "Three Converter" station and get off.
Parking information: 6 yuan / hour, 48 yuan / day
The "Shanghai Museum of Glass" Mini Program can quickly purchase tickets
If a country or city treats a museum and reflects its degree of modern civilization, then how does a museum treat children reflect the future potential of a country or city?
What impressive children's museums have you taken with your children? Welcome to share in the message area!
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Written by | Shenglan Editor | Little Lamb
Duty Editors: Wang Yu, Xiao Yang, Ji He