The true extent of the functions of architecture transcends the limits of the spaces it encapsulates. Beyond the activities delineated by its walls, architecture actively partakes in its context - whether as an extension of the landscape or as a reinforcement of the economy. In Quzika in Markam County, Tibet, at the foot of the Dameiyong Snow Mountain, this winery by Guangzhou-based practice PL-T Architecture Studio aspires to do both. The Quzika 1865 Winery complex ensconced near the Lancang River, thousand-year-old salt fields and the only Catholic church in Tibet, is conceived to generate income for local Tibetans through cultural tourism and the development of local industries. The mountain terraces cascading into the river, century-old walnut trees and grapevines interspersed on the site and remains of an ancient water mill, together with the winery paint a picturesque view that transforms as one circles down the mountain.

PL-T Architecture Studio was established by architects Wang Jianfeng and Li Fei in Guangzhou, China. The studio undertakes in-depth explorations of the different regions—their landscape and culture—to construct sustainable local architecture that is humanistic. The Chinese architects aim to contrive a spatial and architectural character that entirely associates itself with the present, the ‘here and now,’ without being reproducible.

Local Tibetans have bowed to nature for nearly millennia, building their community through native wisdom and know-how. In the two years of the winery’s realisation, the architects visited Tibet 20 times, closely observing the Tibetan people’s lives, landscape features, cultural phenomena and native construction methods around the project site. The concept for the hospitality design, consequently, is largely influenced by the way that Tibetan people simply coexist with nature; the architects developed an approach they term “natural symbiosis” through their interactions with the locals. “In the Tibetan mountains, you must hide in nature and build with nature. You can learn about nature from the Tibetans; express the respect and reverence for the mountains by hiding,” states the official release. The winery, hence, is not only guided by nature but is designed to become a small part of it.

Respectfully concealed at the foot of the mountain, the hospitality design harnesses the height difference on the site while achieving earthwork balance through a top-down, efficient and intensive process flow. The winery is embedded in the descending terraces, avoiding the old trees, as a response to natural landscape. The architects design the roof of the process space as a waterscape, forming a salt field. Streams of natural spring water originating from the snow-capped mountains flow through the roofs and into the Lancang River at the bottom of the valley. Different seasons result in high and low water spells, leading to an ever-changing scenery.

The public space constitutes a museum, a restaurant, a book bar and a reception centre, envisioned as three ‘rocks’ scattered amongst walnut trees on the ‘salt field.’ The material for the outer wall is locally sourced from existing stones and aligns with the original stone wall on the site. The stone wall significantly enhances the thermal insulation of the brewing space and makes the construction economically viable; the material palette of the stone architecture works harmoniously with the mountains in the backdrop - augmenting the natural setting.

The poetic scene of the ‘salt fields’ reaching out to the Lancang River is inspired by the layers and light and shadow of the thousand-year-old salt fields. The sustainable architecture is presented as layers of roofs on the natural terraces - the water surface on the roofs revealing a spirited interplay of light and shadows as the angle of viewing changes. With the mountain in the background and the river ahead of it, the winery unfolds downwards in such a way that it morphs into a link between both.

The Quzika Winery hopes to open up new avenues for the local youth and elderly of the region, alleviating the burden on families. The project respectfully bridges the winery and the villagers' lives together. It emerges not as an alienated entity on the site but as a natural scene integrated with its context. The original landscape—the mountain and the river—together with the winery, provide a new, yet familiar, backdrop for the natives’ daily activities. The conflict between human-made structures and nature, thus blurs in this architectural intervention.