The museum understands the importance of first impressions, and a crew of Yue Minjun's smiling polychrome sculptures announces the importance of this art center.

As Beijing's modern art scene continues to surge into the limelight, the number of its galleries keeps apace. As with any city with a massive art scene, the quality of art you can find ranges from jaw-droppingly phenomenal to stomach-churningly terrible. CRI's William Wang takes you on a tour to galleries which showcase high caliber art, art which impresses via its subtleties, shock-value, craftsmanship or… inaccessibility.

A ways southeast of Guomao subway station is Pingod Art District, one of Beijing's hip destinations that somehow stays under the mainstream radar. Home to Modern Sky Records' headquarters and numerous galleries and design studios, Pingod would be worth a visit even if it didn't have its focal point of the Today Art Museum.

The museum understands the importance of first impressions, and a crew of Yue Minjun's smiling polychrome sculptures announces the importance of this art center. And with metal grilling and walkways slicing into original brick faces, the building itself is an unapologetically modern interpretation of the boiler house it used to be. A row of white figures precariously dangle their legs off of the building's roof.

The Today Art Museum is Beijing's only private museum which focuses exclusively on contemporary art, pushing culture forwards as China concurrently modernizes.

Renee Xu, the museum's exhibition department director, mentioned the prestige for artists by holding a solo show at the museum. "The most representative Chinese contemporary artists like Zhang Xiaogang, Wang Guangyi, Yue Minjun and Fang Lijun…. when they have their solo show, they would take Today Art Museum as the very first choice."

Wang Guangyi himself will have a highly anticipated solo exhibition at Today Art Museum this October, showcasing his iconic works which contrast the imagery of Chinese propaganda posters with pop art and the language of advertising.

But it's not only Chinese artists who covet a show at the three building complex. The most active contemporary artists in the world recognize what this venue has to offer both in its reputation and its facilities.

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.

"We receive visitors who are confused by contemporary art. They're always looking for meaning. But that's already past tense with art. It might just be about your emotion, your thoughts, your way of expression. That's all. There's no right or wrong."

This may be baffling to some, but luckily all of the attendants in the exhibition halls are trained to discuss art with patrons, having been schooled by curators or artists themselves.

Xu acknowledges that many people new to contemporary art may find it "messy, stupid or crazy," but as long as they find it interesting, she feels satisfied that the work has had an impact.