Gold Architecture, Building and Structure Design · 2021
Wenlan Mansion Display Center
- A' Design Award 2021 Gold Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design
- Awarded April 15, 2021
- CLIENT: Shanghai PTArchitects
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 23,666
- Verification code CBAB7853E5 · Verify this award
About Wenlan Mansion Display Center
Wenlan Mansion is a display center located near West Mountain and Dian Lake in Kunming, China. The site faces the mountain, offers an open view and is surrounded by ecological resources. The design uses the five meter height difference of the ground to create vertical spaces and an ascending view. The layout follows traditional Kunming courtyards, with axis symmetry and a front and back yard plan that divides the site into a cultural exhibition area, a water courtyard and a private garden. Stone and aluminum plate are used on the facade.
The Wenlan Mansion Display Center by WRight Communication exemplifies the continued evolution of contemporary architectural practice that seeks meaningful dialogue between building and landscape, between solid and void, between the precision of constructed geometry and the poetic ambiguity of natural phenomena. Captured at the liminal moment between day and night, this architectural composition demonstrates how carefully considered formal decisions can transform a functional building program into an experiential destination that engages visitors through multiple sensory registers. The dramatic pitched roof form, extending in an unbroken sweep that recalls both traditional vernacular precedents and the dynamic expressionism of mid-century modernism, creates an unmistakable silhouette that identifies the structure from considerable distance while providing generous protected outdoor space beneath its cantilevered edges. The architects appear to have embraced transparency as both pragmatic strategy and philosophical position, deploying extensive glazing that renders the building as a lantern in the landscape during evening hours, its warm interior glow offering invitation and welcome to approaching visitors. The integration of a reflecting pool extending along the building's primary elevation transforms the architectural experience through the introduction of aquatic reflection, effectively doubling the visual presence of the structure while introducing the meditative qualities associated with still water in garden design traditions across multiple cultures. The delicate mist rising from the water's surface adds temporal dimension to the composition, suggesting the ephemeral nature of atmospheric conditions and encouraging sustained contemplation of the interplay between permanent structure and transient phenomena. Interior decorative elements visible through the glass envelope, including geometric lattice screens that filter and modulate light, suggest careful attention to the experiential sequence awaiting visitors within. One might consider how this building negotiates the threshold between public and private, between display and intimacy, between the aspirational imagery of marketing and the tangible reality of constructed space.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- The project is located in the tourism section of West Mountain’s Dian Lake, An’ning City, Kunming. Facing the West Mountain, the site offers an open view and is surrounded by an abundance of ecological resources. The project leverages the height differences of the area and its surrounding landscape resources. The architect strives to create vertical buildings with both style and functions, and to build an open community that shares both urban like neighbourhood and the green resources of nature at the same time.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- People who have long lived under the uproars of urban life have always longed for a homecoming experience through the embrace of nature. By utilizing the terrain difference and the landscape of the West Mountain, the architect brings a unique oneness to the site. The project offers the visitors an ascending view, along with multi-layered and multi-featured theme spaces. For instance, take a stroll and join us on the community’s homecoming tour, including: the display area, the entrance, the front corridor, the water spiral stairwell, the townhouse showroom, and the villa showroom.
- Tags
- display Center, open community, interactive circling, experience pathway, front-back yard layout
- Production Technology
- The architect creates multiple spaces to echo with the undulating terrain of the West Mountain. The concept comes from the architectural features of traditional courtyards in Kunming, featured with typical axis symmetry and front-back yard layout, which divides the site into three spaces: the cultural exhibition area, the water courtyard, and the private garden. Thus, the architect creates a sense of order and beauty in the overall space.
- Design Challenge
- This project is a mountain project with large disparities on ground levels and complex geological conditions. At the same time, the space is long and narrow and insufficient for street-side display. There is not enough space available for construction, not to mention the 5m height difference of the ground levels.
The exhibition area makes good use of the height difference to create multiple spaces into a vertical cityscape, and the commercial spaces are arranged along the streets facing the urban interface to form a dynamic commercial area. Vibrant street corners are set up among the plots, and rich commercial choices meet different life scenarios, to form humane and entertaining commercial streets, condensing the homelike atmosphere of the residential community and creating transitional spaces between the roads. - Project Duration
- The project started in Mar. 2019 and finished in Sep. 2020 in Kunming, China
- Operation Flow
- The entrance area is located on the axis of the sales section, which surrounds the courtyard to form a centripetal space centered on the water courtyard. The frontage is designed according to the special features of traditional Yunnan architecture, which aims to achieve both cultural preservation and constructional style in architecture, merging the local style with the new concept of future architecture. Through detailed research on materials and construction methods such as stone type, metal aluminum plate, etc., and through rediscovering the proper order in the space of a home, art of life in “seclusion” in a serene and poetic atmosphere is thence created.
- Research
- Through the entrance comes the front corridor. Multiple courtyard spaces produce multiple life experiences. The winding staircase guides the visitor’s sight from ancient residence to a modern glass box.
At the top of the stairs, the roof of the display center looks like a leaf floating on still water. The water side terrace reduces the transition of different spaces, and the wide overhang ensures that the light coming from outside is comfortable inside the building..
The wall of the entrance of the residential area is like a white scroll stretching beside the water pool. All the urban uproars are silenced here and fade away, only the beautiful natural scenery welcome the residents back home. - Inspiration
- As the project is located in a mountainous area with different elevations, at the beginning the architect adjusts the area in an appropriate and orderly manner. Then he connected the functional units of the building with an interactive circling experience pathway. Through a series of visual corridors that direct to the urban area, the architect forms a spatial guide which is perpendicular to the main street.
- Image Credits
- IMAGE by Zeng Jianghe
Colors of Wenlan Mansion Display Center
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