Location: Shenzhen, China.

Architect: Studio Zhu-Pei.

The Oct design museum is a surreal space for design exhibitions, focusing on fashion shows, product design, and conceptual automotive shows. The inspiration for the project comes from the location being close to the bay and the needs of the program. The goal was to create a space that is surreal to the subject matter but also transcendental in surrounding and feeling. The design of the interior relies on a continuous white curving surface that casts no shadows and has no depth, resulting in a surreal borderless space that seems to go on into the infinite. The exterior form of the building is a direct reflection of the continuous curving space inside, with a smooth organic form that seems to float above the ground. The building becomes a blank surreal background, with only small triangular windows scattered randomly. The first floor of the building holds the entry lobby and café, while the second and third is mainly exhibition space. Storage space is spread out evenly through the floors, with movable walls allowing the exhibition spaces to be very flexible in scale and function. The Oct design museum is like a purely smooth stone cast into an overly saturated urban setting, with its form seeming to not be from this planet.

Photo credit: Fang Zhenning.