studio zhu pei conceives xiao qinghe wetland museum as a submerged landscape

chinese architecture practice studio zhu pei has revealed plans for the xiao qinghe wetland museum, an inconspicuous project which exists partially below ground. when navigating the undulating terrain, guests to the site must negotiate constant changes in elevation and surface. as a result, what appears to be a continuous ground plane is scattered with areas where walkable surface sinks below the waterline.

the inconspicuous project exists partially below ground

‘in our abstraction of the the wetland landscape, we were interested in the moments both seen and unseen,’ explain the architects. designed as a composition of architecture, landscape, and sculpture, sheltered areas of the scheme are submerged beneath the ground plane. covered by a subtle green roof, the approach is marked only by three sets of undulating sculptural mounds. consequently, the museum appears much smaller than it is, with the scaleless quality of the soft sloping forms creating an environment that feels natural, yet still somewhat surreal. construction is scheduled to be complete by 2016.

guests to the site must negotiate constant changes in elevation and surface

sheltered areas of the scheme are submerged beneath the ground plane

covered by a subtle green roof, the approach is only marked by three sets of undulating sculptural mounds

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project info:

architects: studio zhu pei
name: xiao qinghe wetland museum
location: ji’nan, shandong, china
design: 2014-2015
construction: 2015-2016