Wutopia Lab transcends time and tradition through 'The Eye of the Museum’

In the heart of Changchun, a once-industrial landscape in east China, a remarkable transformation unfolds as the visionary design firm Wutopia Lab breathes new life into the urban fabric. A symphony of contrasts and harmonies, the museum project stands as an ode to the convergence of robust fair-faced concrete with the ethereal allure of rhetorical fragments. Through meticulous craftsmanship, the design artfully weaves together symbols, metaphors, and parallels, creating a masterpiece that resonates far beyond its physical dimensions. Nestled between the historic Manchurian Regime Palace complex and the Museum of the History of Northeast China under Japanese Occupation, the Eye of the Museum emerges as a contemporary sentinel amidst traditional architectural heritage. While its neighbours boast the elegance of sloping roof structures and intricate details, the art museum boldly asserts its modernity through innovative roof design and sheer simplicity of expression.

The Chinese architecture studio, in a proclamation echoing their ideas on the concept of the design in a statement, defines the museum as a "contemporary expressionist sanctuary that liberates our souls from the constant grip of time in our daily lives, allowing us to reexamine history and memory, and thereby grasp the meaning of our existences." The artistry of the curvilinear fair-faced concrete roof forms not only challenges convention but shatters it with audacious elegance. This defiance extends to the use of concrete as a liberated shell structure, casting aside the shackles of orderly molds. The integration of BIM technology ensures meticulous attention to detail, from the grandeur of the span structure to the intricacies of panel joints, visible seams, and tie rod eyelets.

With foundations plunging 17.67 meters into the north and 10.47 meters into the south, the architecture is a feat of engineering ingenuity. Mere millimeters away from the original walls, the new museum architecture stands firm with new anchor rods and static pressure piles, a symphony of balance and stability. The Eye of the Museum has a considerable depth below the ground as it carves out the earth to build a structure that emerges from the ground to receive its light from strategically designed skylights. Additionally, a ballet of cables and pipelines are woven into the fabric of the design, addressing temperature control, wind resistance, security, and safety concerns. Spanning over 10,000 sqm, the monumental fair-faced structure extends majestically to embrace a sprawling southern plaza, seamlessly blending with its surroundings.

Central to this opus are wing-shaped swept domes, artful spatial nodes designed with purpose. Stretching 27.5 meters in length, 18 meters in width, and soaring 16.5 meters high, these nodes weave the threads of life, history, environment, and society into a cohesive narrative, beckoning visitors to traverse the corridors of deep time as reminisced in the statement by Wutopia Lab.

The play of light is an invaluable theme and forms an equally authoritative material exploration in the museum design. The interplay of natural light with the insertion of skylights in the architecture of the museum allows one to experience the passage of time throughout the building. Contrary to the commonly regarded nature of underground structures, which most often do not make a definitive attempt to bring in large amounts of natural light, however in this design, the Chinese architects carve out light wells where the light pierces through the structure. This sublime dance of light crystallises the architect's poetic endeavour into a tangible symphony of illumination.

In tandem with the museum's grand opening, Wutopia Lab unveiled Wuto-Art, a testament to the firm's unwavering commitment to innovation. A striking installation of perforated aluminum panels by the visionary artist Yu Ting graces the space, foretelling a thematic element that shall grace the canvas of all future architectural creations by the lab.

In Changchun's industrial tapestry, Wutopia Lab has envisioned an orchestrated poetic transformation in their concept and execution, an architectural sonnet that resonates with the past, present, and future. The art museum stands not just as a physical edifice but as a vessel, carrying the weight of history, the cadence of memory, and the vision of modernity.

Project Details

Name: Deep Time Palace Design
Firm: Wutopia Lab
Chief Architect: Yu TingProject
Architect: Huang HeProject
Manager: Pu ShengruiDesign
Team: Pu Shengrui, Pan Dali, Sun Liran (Conceptual Design Phase)Xie Jialin (Drawing CompilationPhase)
Installation Design: Kuang Zhou, Huang He, Xie Jialin
Owner: Palace Museum of the Manchurian Regime
Owner Construction Committee: Wang Zhiqiang, Hu Hailong, Zhou Bo, Ai Xuesong, Su Zhenda, Liu Yongwei, Wei WeiConstruction
Proxy: Changchun Municipal Government Investment Construction Project Management Center Construction
Drawing: Tianjin Architectural Design Institute Co., Ltd
Construction Side: China Construction Eighth Engineering Division Co.,Ltd.(North China)
Design Consultants: Wei Minfei, MiaoBinhai, Zhang Zhun, Qian Yanmin, Lin Xingchun, Zhang KejieLighting
Consultant: Gradient Lighting Design
Chloe Zhang, Zang Yanting, Deng Xiaodan
Interior Design (Non-fair-faced Concrete Area): Jilin Wuyi Construction Co., Ltd.
Shanghai Hip-pop Architectural Decoration Design Co.,Ltd. (Concept)
Low-voltage System Design: Jilin Beihua Electric Power Technology Design & Research InstituteJilin Yongji Branch
Landscape Design: Changchun Garden Planning Research Institute Co.,Ltd.
Location: No. 5 Guangfu NorthRoad, Kuancheng District, Changchun City
Total Area: 16,650 square meters
Project Time: May 2017-July 2018
Completion Date: May 2023