The Qujiang Art Museum is situated south of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda within Xi’an’s Tang Dynasty Night City. The owner envisions a new iconic structure at the museum’s east entrance. This expansion project is inspired by the concept of “urban memorial buildings,” aiming not only to fulfill the cultural and commercial needs of the museum’s growth but also to embody the urban fabric and social history of the area.
The original museum space envelops the new extension. Ruen Design Research Laboratory thoughtfully considered the massing and details of the expansion to minimize disruption to the existing building.
The expansion consists of four distinct parts: a sunken base, a sculptural walkway, a viewing platform, and a monument. The entire base, constructed with cast-in-place concrete, descends from the original square level, extending seamlessly into the public space.
At the main entrance on the first floor, Ruen preserved some original wide steps that connect to the sunken base. This solid concrete pedestal retains the museum’s existing space and restaurant while introducing new functions such as retail areas and public restrooms, enhancing the vibrancy of the adjacent pedestrian street.
An escalator connects the ground level to the museum’s B2 floor, appearing as a sculptural tunnel woven through compressed and expanded sectional spaces. A three-story-high skylight injects dramatic natural light into the sunken square.
The viewing platform, suspended above the sunken base, is expressed through a column-and-lintel structural system. This suspended platform, positioned between grid-like stone pillars and a glass curtain wall, encloses retail spaces and visually separates the carved language of the sunken base from the circular volume forms.
Ruen placed a second-floor lounge within the circular sculpture crowning the building. To enhance transparency, the facade features diamond-shaped red cave stones arranged at intervals. A passage at the northwest corner of the original building leads directly to the second-floor terrace, revealing a bowl-shaped hollow circular theater.
This theater expands the museum’s recreational, dining, and leisure offerings and serves as a versatile public venue for performances, screenings, lectures, and other events, providing an open space for community engagement.
Project Drawings
Project Information
Architect: Ruen Design Research Laboratory
Area: 1990 m²
Project Year: 2021
Photographer: STUDIO FANG, Zhu Runzi
Lead Architects: Guo Xi’en, Hu Rushan
Host Assistant: Zhao Lei
Design Team: Feng Lixing, Quan Wenbo, Han Xiao, Tian Hua, Wu Ye
Local Design Institute: China Northwest Architectural Design and Research Institute Co., Ltd
Lighting Design: Linailite Lighting (China) Co., Ltd
Construction: China Electric Power Construction Group Chongqing Engineering Co., Ltd
Client: Xi’an Yungao International Hotel Co., Ltd
Location: Xi’an
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