[2] The Suzhou Museum was founded in 1960, originally located in the former residence of Zhong Wang, an important general during the Taiping Rebellion.

[4] The museum houses four permanent exhibitions: Relics of Wudi, National Treasure of Wu Tower, Wuzhong Fengya, and Wumen Calligraphy and Painting.

[4] The modern art exhibition has shown works by artists including Zao Wou-ki, Cai Guoqiang, and Xu Bing.

[citation needed] The PBS American Masters television documentary series chronicled the design, construction, and inauguration of the new museum in a 2010 episode entitled "I.M.

The main courtyard is a creative landscape garden surrounded on the east, west and south sides by the museum structure.

[4][7][8] Pei used simple geometric shapes such as octagons, rhombuses, and triangles as the building blocks of the museum's design.

The roofs and ceilings are a patchwork of triangles, rectangles, and rhombuses, which differentiates the structure from the traditional Suzhou buildings surrounding the museum.