Tank Shanghai, a popular art museum in China known for unique art works and activities, consists of five repurposed oil tanks surrounded by a large lawn. While people know it as an art museum, most have forgotten that the tanks originally served Shanghai’s Longhua Airport, constructed in 1917, as one of the earliest and largest airfields in China. Located close to the city, Longhua’s clearance was limited, so after August 1966, most operations were transferred to the Hongqiao International Airport. By 2013, most of the airport had been dismantled.

This essay addresses questions regarding the advantages and disadvantages of transforming industrial buildings into art facilities. How have the historical and cultural values of the site been preserved? Is the approach of a complete renovation, in terms of architecture and function, successful? Should the site be more active in conveying the embedded collective memory of the former airport? Protecting a historic environment is not only about including it on a list and stopping change from happening, but often about endowing it with new functions. Is it possible to completely reinvent a building for a new and unrelated set of functions and activities without losing the essence of its historic value?