Shanghai’s art lovers are somewhat chagrined that the first full exhibition featuring French painter Claude Monet (1840-1926) on China’s mainland ended up opening at the third underground level of a downtown shopping mall.

Back in 2012, just three original canvases of the Western impressionist master rated a reservation in an exhibition hall at the Shanghai Museum, a top art and history museum in People’s Square.

But despite the location of the “Master of Impressionism — Claude Monet” exhibition in an underground level of the trendy K11 mall and the comparatively high admission of 100 yuan (US$16.29), locals’ passion has not been dimmed for the exhibition, which also includes works by several other impressionist masters.

During the first weekend, there were nearly 7,000 visitors, according to Liu Yuxian, a staff member at Tix Media, which together with the K11 Art Foundation organized the show. “We are really surprised.”

All of the artwork in the Monet show is on loan from the Paris Marmottan Monet Museum. The show features 40 original works by Monet, including his famous “Water Lilies,” and 15 paintings by other masters such as Renoir.

More than 60,000 people had reserved tickets for the Shanghai Monet show prior to its opening last Friday, a number that was beyond even what organizers expected.

Lines grew so long outside the shopping mall that one ticket scalper asked 150 yuan for a spot in the front of the queue.

“I am a fan of Monet and I reserved the ticket earlier, but I didn’t expect there were so many crazy fans like me in the city,” says Opal Liu, a 43-year-old white collar worker. “I was daunted by the long queue. I may visit the show later.”

Although the response demonstrates Shanghai’s undiluted enthusiasm for world-class exhibitions, the somewhat awkward location also speaks to what some perceive as the lack of first-class, dedicated art museums in the city that can meet all the requirements for a show of classical masterpieces, such as location, rental fees and technical support. Such factors matter even more for a major show put on by a private exhibition organizer like Tix Media, which cannot afford to lose money.

Xie Dingwei, director of Tix Media, recalls the dilemma he faced a couple of years ago when he tried to organize a big Picasso exhibition in Shanghai.

That exhibition in 2011 was held at the former China Pavilion, the distinctive red, inverted-pyramid building at the World Expo 2010 Shanghai. It later became the China Art Museum, billed as Asia’s largest art museum, in October 2012 after a huge renovation. The museum’s predecessor was the Shanghai Art Museum, which had been located in the former Shanghai Race Club building at People’s Square since 2000.

“It cost me about 10 million yuan to rent the China Pavilion for the Picasso exhibition, but the admission fee was set at only about 20 yuan according to certain regulations,” Xie says. “It was impossible for me to cover the whole expense. To tell the truth, my company suffered a loss of 20 million yuan for the exhibition.”

Besides the money issue, location is also a priority.

Xie says he considered holding the Monet show at the same place, now the renovated China Art Museum. “But the location is not ideal when considering transportation, the neighborhood and the stream of people,” he explains.

The former Expo area in Pudong, he indicates, is definitely not as much a crowd magnet as downtown Huaihai Road. “Actually there are not many choices (in Shanghai) for venues to hold a major show like Monet’s. A lot is for contemporary art.”

Li Xiangyang, former director of the Shanghai Art Museum, says he knew before Xie’s Picasso show started that it was going to lose money.

“We know that the China Pavilion was not built to the standard of a proper museum,” he says. “Thus it was akin to building a ‘tiny museum’ inside the pavilion, from security system to new equipment controlling temperature and humidity. I am not sure whether Xie is going to lose money on this Monet exhibition again. But I am not that optimistic.”

Rubens at China Art Museum

Paralleling the Monet show, China Art Museum is having an exhibition of the Flemish school of artists including heavyweight names such as Rubens and Van Dyke.

The Flemish exhibition has not attracted the type of buzz that the Monet event has had, but it is still impressive. Some experts and frequent exhibition-goers say it’s hard to compare the two in terms of size and quality of the venue — the Flemish exhibit is much larger and it is displayed in a big, government-supported museum.

The exhibition includes 20 original paintings by Rubens and other 80 works by big names such as Van Dyke and Jan de Cock. It is on loan from the collections of the Prince of Liechtenstein.

The opportunity to see even a couple of original Rubens canvases, not to mention 20 of his best works, is treasured by local art aficionados.

“This exhibition is worth visiting,” says Li Lei, vice director of China Art Museum. “I have no comment comparing it with some other exhibitions. But this one definitely won’t disappoint the visitors.”

The advantages of a museum-organized exhibition is obvious since the financial pressure is not so great. Such museum exhibitions often aren’t as promoted as extensively, either.

According to Xie, covering a privately organized exhibition’s expenses heavily depends on admission fees and products derived from the art, such as scarves and posters.

That’s why when the K11 Art Foundation agreed to offer a free venue, he immediately agreed.

Although the underground space covers 3,000 square meters, some visitors say it does seem to have problems handling the huge crowds.

“After all, the air (underground) is not so fresh. After half an hour at the site, I felt kind of like I was suffocating a bit, especially surrounded by the crowd,” says Vivian Zhou, a 38-year-old bank accountant. “This is a good exhibition, but it would be better if it’s in a bigger, more spacious museum.”

A private art space may find it difficult to stack up against professional art museums in terms of ventilation, lighting and security.

But for Xie, who says he has already spent several dozen million yuan on the Monet exhibition, the crowds are the lifeblood.

“For me, the more visitors to the exhibition, the better,” he says. “Otherwise I may hardly make ends meet for this project again.”

Li, the former Shanghai Art Museum director, says he’s not surprised at the Monet exhibition’s organizers having to shop for the best deal.

“That’s the issue of venue and rental fees for non-government-aided exhibitions,” he explains. “When I was in charge of the (former) Shanghai Art Museum on Nanjing Road, if the exhibition was qualified, even if the Shanghai Art Museum was not the organizer, the museum would also offer a free space to the exhibitors. For some occasions, we even would give some financial help.

Wishing for ideal location

“But now the conditions are different. New art museums whether private ones or government-aided ones rise up in the city one after another, but there are hardly any museums that would be ‘generous’ to private exhibition organizers.”

Xie says his biggest hope is to have his private exhibition venue.

“I once thought of renting an exhibition venue along the Huangpu River, but the cost was too high,” he says. “It would be ideal if there is an art museum inside the People’s Park, which could fit in with the old Shanghai Art Museum and Shanghai Grand Theater in the neighborhood.”

It was controversial when the Shanghai Art Museum moved to the China Pavilion in Pudong in 2012. Now the museum’s old site, the historic racing club building, is still empty.

Xie cites the example of the Louvre, Musee d’Orsay and Musee de l’Orangerie along the Seine in Paris.

“That’s exactly where art culminates, and I hope it would happen one day in Shanghai,” Xie concludes.

• “Master of Impressionism — Claude Monet”

Date: Through June 15, 11am-6pm

Address: B3, 300 Huaihai Rd M.

Admission: 100 yuan

• “Masterpieces from the Collection of the Prince of Liechtenstein”

Date: Through June 2 (closed on Mondays), 9am-5pm

Address: 161 Shangnan Rd, Pudong

Admission: 20 yuan