Location: Nanshangang, Sangzhou Town, China.

Architect: Architectural Design & Research Institute Of ZheJiang University.

The Qingxi Culture and History Museum is a small cultural and tourism building located in Ninghai County, Zhejiang, China. The project was designed by The Architectural Design & Research Institute of Zhejiang University Co., Ltd. (UAD) and covers an area of 1,691 square meters. The building integrates a tourist center and spaces for displaying and experiencing the local history and culture. The design principle of the project is to respect nature and blend into the environment. The exterior spaces are created in a way that adapts to the site’s terrain and natural setting, while the interior spaces are created in accordance with the external form. The building is constructed using local materials and techniques, and the details such as stone window frames and drip edges were meticulously made by craftsmen. The building “dissolves” into the mountain and river landscape that has existed for centuries, embodying not only style and appearance but also expressing long-standing social, cultural, and technical systems and the recognition of nature and local features. The architecture features a volume that dissolves into the environment and delicate spaces crafted by appropriate techniques. The building dialogues with the surroundings such as terraced fields, creek, bridge, and paths. The designers created a small cultural destination that reflects local and site features in a low-profile gesture and a vernacular form. The project has won several awards, including the Outstanding Engineering Survey and Design Award (First Prize) and the WAN Awards (Gold).

Photo credit: Ding Junhao.