Private museum Simple Design Archive is a ‘poetic sound sanctuary’ in China
Simple Design Archive, located in China’s Anhui province, is a private museum by HAS Design and Research, fostering a contemplative environment
Simple Design Archive, set in the city of Hefei in eastern China’s Anhui province, takes its cues from its region’s natural, mountainous landscape. Its author, HAS Design and Research, crafted this private museum, specialising in collecting contemporary Asian artwork and modern European furniture, around a series of curves and voids that nod to ‘caves facing the sky’.
Simple Design Archive by HAS Design and Research
The young and dynamic Bangkok and Shanghai-based architecture studio was founded in 2019 by Jenchieh Hung and Kulthida Songkittipakdee – and featured in the 2022 Wallpaper* Architects Directory for its architectural explorations around minimalism and material research, the poetic and the functional. The pair took the same approach with this project, using the external walls’ wavy, opaque shapes to create sleek, flowing internal exhibition spaces. At the same time, the walls act as barriers, blocking street noise to foster a contemplative environment inside.
Within these wall formations, the architects crafted an open-air, ‘echo chamber’ courtyard, aiming for it to be a ‘poetic sound sanctuary’, explains the architecture team. This outdoor area is lightly planted and fragrant, also serving as a hub for biodiversity, designed to attract insects and animals, such as cicadas and birds. The intention was to compose a space for relaxation and easy coexistence for humans and nature alike. ‘In the afternoon, the curved walls block the harsh western sunlight, allowing partial sunlight to filter into the echo chamber courtyard, creating a sacred space reminiscent of a church. This adds a sense of extraordinary ritual to the otherwise mundane city life.’
The interior follows the same approach, keeping things simple and seemingly effortless. Yet a closer look reveals a highly calibrated design sequence. Visitors are guided through a minimalist foyer to the gallery areas, where displays sit next to an art and materials library.
A sense of calm dominates throughout, aided by the building’s skylights, which serve as the main openings, illuminating the space softly, while keeping the distractions of the busy urban setting outside.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
The best design-led cocktail shakers
If you like your drinks shaken not stirred, these are the best cocktail shakers to take your mixology skills to the next level
By Rosie Conroy Published
-
Tech Editor, Jonathan Bell, selects six new and notable Bluetooth speaker designs, big, small and illuminating
These six wireless speakers signal new creative partnerships and innovative tech approaches in a variety of scales and styles
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
As London’s V&A spotlights Mughal-era design, Santi Jewels tells of its enduring relevance
‘The Great Mughals: Art, Architecture and Opulence’ is about to open at London’s V&A. Here, Mughal jewellery expert and Santi Jewels founder Krishna Choudhary tells us of the influence the dynasty holds today
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Sun Tower is a new Chinese cultural attraction that draws on the celestial cycle
Sun Tower, an imaginative cultural attraction by Open Architecture, draws on the natural cycle and has just opened in China's seaside town of Yantai
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
The Suzhou visitor centre in China is a perfect balance of contemporary innovation and cultural identity
The Suzhou visitor centre in China is designed by Tsing-Tien Making, a studio that designs to preserve cultural identity
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Architectural Association's newest show uncovers the architectural legacies of rural China's lost generation
The Architectural Association’s ‘Ripple Ripple Rippling’ is not your typical architecture show, taking an anthropological look at the flux between rural and urban, and bringing a part of China to Bedford Square in London
By Teshome Douglas-Campbell Published
-
Neri & Hu’s dynamic New Bund theatre takes centre stage in Shanghai’s cityscape
In Shanghai, Neri & Hu’s New Bund 31 Performing Arts Center is a theatre offering a contemporary take on a classical archetype
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024: meet the practices
In the Wallpaper* Architects Directory 2024, our latest guide to exciting, emerging practices from around the world, 20 young studios show off their projects and passion
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Tsing-Tien Making's approach is rooted in its 'passion' for architecture
Tsing-Tien Making, a young Chinese practice, joins the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
'Famous but understudied': IM Pei exhibition at M+ in Hong Kong is a deep dive into the architect's legacy
'IM Pei: Life is Architecture' is an exhibition celebrating the global icon; and it's just opened at M+ in Hong Kong
By Ijeoma Ndukwe Published
-
Fotografiska Shanghai invites us to 'a poetic immersion' into the realm of photography
Fotografiska Shanghai by AIM Architecture opens nestled into a green corner of the Chinese city's Suzhou Creek
By Ellie Stathaki Published