Suzhou Museum of Contemporary Art, China
The Suzhou Museum of Contemporary Art located along the Jinji Lake waterfront in Suzhou, is designed by BIG in collaboration with ARTS Group and Front Inc. The 60,000 square-metre museum comprises 12 pavilions under a continuous roof informed by the tiled eaves of traditional Chinese architecture. The architecture of the museum reinterprets "lang" – a long, sheltered corridor connecting various pavilions commonly seen in centuries-old Suzhou gardens.
The design for the Suzhou Museum of Contemporary Art is conceived as a garden of pavilions and courtyards. Individual pavilions are woven together by glazed galleries and porticoes, creating a Chinese knot of interconnected sculpture courtyards and exhibition spaces. Four large pavilions house the main galleries, while the remaining pavilions contain a grand entrance space, multifunction hall, theatre and a restaurant. Each of the pavilions were clad in rippled and curved glass and warm-toned stainless steel, reflecting the surrounding sky, water, and gardens - blurring the boundaries between architecture and nature.
Each of the pavilions are connected via bridges and underground tunnels to allow movement around the complex. Clerestories and skylights light up the interiors of the pavilions with natural light, creating playful shadow movement on the gallery walls. The seating and displays of each gallery were made of materials including yellow rust stone, rammed earth and terrazzo. Passive shading, natural ventilation, and locally sourced materials are incorporated into the design and construction of the museum, achieving China's GBEL 2-Star Green Building certification.
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