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Last summer, Alexander Wang bought<\/a> the Beaux-Arts HSBC bank on Bowery and Canal for $9.5 million in cash. At the time, the fashion designer declined to say what he was planning to do with the domed 1924 landmark<\/a>, which HSBC had shuttered a few years earlier. Now, Wang and his mother, Ying \u2014 one of the co-trustees on the deed \u2014 have announced<\/a> that they will be opening an Asian American cultural center, Wang Contemporary, in the 17,600-square-foot space at 58 Bowery. The organization will host performances, art exhibitions, and other cultural programming, starting with an inaugural show, opening on February 20, by the art collective MSCHF (known for pranksterish <\/a>send-ups of fashion culture like Nikes with human blood in their soles and a limited run of Big Red Boots<\/a> inspired by Astro Boy).<\/p>\n The building, a grand standalone structure, was completed in 1924 for Citizens Saving Bank. A series of other banks passed through over the decades until HSBC took over in 1999. Landmarked in 2011, it\u2019s one of several early 20th-century New York banks to be repurposed for nonfinancial uses\u00a0\u2014 the Williamsburg Savings Bank is now an events space, Dime Savings Bank in Downtown Brooklyn has been incorporated into Brooklyn Tower, and the nearby Bowery Savings Bank is home to events space Capitale. Wang Contemporary, according to a release from the Wangs, will not just host the work of emerging and established Asian and Asian American artists but also serve as \u201ca gathering space for both the local community and international audiences.\u201d Some of the events will be free, including the MSCHF show \u201c20,000 planes,\u201d a three-day performance-based event timed to Lunar New Year.<\/p>\n Photo: Fairchild Archive\/Penske Media\/Getty Images\n <\/p>\n It\u2019s a somewhat curious move for a fashion designer, but Wang, who became famous in the mid-aughts for designing effortlessly cool party-girl clothes, can certainly benefit from some reputational repair. Wang, who left Balenciaga in 2015 to focus on his own label, which was reportedly bringing in $150 million in sales by 2016, was accused of sexual assault<\/a> \u2014 groping men at parties \u2014 in 2020. He initially denied<\/a> the accusations but later issued an apology<\/a> and spent the next few years laying low before he started showing again in 2022. He returned<\/a> to New York Fashion Week last fall with a collection titled \u201cMatriarch,\u201d crediting his mother as an inspiration.<\/p>\n Ying Wang is also described as a driving force of the Bowery project. A Taiwanese immigrant, she owned a California plastics factory, according to Crain\u2019s, and helped Wang run his namesake label as CEO and chairman at various times (other family members also held positions at the fashion label). The release notes this is the first time the Chinatown landmark has been owned by a Chinese American in its 100-year history.<\/p>\n Sign Up for the Curbed Newsletter<\/p>\n A daily mix of stories about cities, city life, and our always evolving neighborhoods and skylines.<\/p>\n Vox Media, LLC Terms and Privacy Notice<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/84267fe45d69982d56ce922af789ee25c3-GettyImages-1458991592.rvertical.w570.jpg\")
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