Hermes at West Bund Dome Art Center — Hermès Mystery at the Grooms (2024)

Hermès turned the West Bund Dome Art Center into a nine-room detective trail, open by timed reservation, from 7 to 15 December 2024.

The venue

The West Bund Dome Art Center is a dome-shaped exhibition hall on Shanghai's West Bund riverside cultural strip, converted from an industrial structure and now used for art shows, fairs and brand events. Its interior is a single large volume under a high domed ceiling, with few internal columns as built, so temporary walls and scenery can be arranged freely. Entry is typically through a forecourt rather than a street frontage.

How the space was used

For the nine-day run the hall was divided into nine rooms built as theatrical sets, framed as the grooms' quarters and their surroundings. Visitors entered as self-appointed detectives, following clues on their phones and searching objects for hoof marks. Circulation moved room to room in sequence, with a character's voice guiding the route and pony figures hidden in hay, bedrooms and cupboards.

Why it works here

A column-free dome suits set-built narrative exhibitions: partitions, scenery and lighting can be installed without fighting the structure, and a single controlled volume keeps timed-entry queues indoors. The West Bund location draws a design-aware audience already visiting neighbouring museums, and the hall's scale holds a multi-room route without a retail fit-out.