A9a architects creates community driven timber market in Zhengzhou
Pulo Market by A9a architects injects soul into a commercial building in China's Zhengzhou
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

Concepts of community, memory and revitalisation mix in A9a architects' most recent public project. Welcome to Pulo Market, a hub of retail, leisure and creativity in the Chinese city of Zhengzhou, Henan province. Conceived as a commercial building with a soul centred on community, the project was designed to serve the local population through its openness and inviting nature, but also to celebrate timber as a building material, its frame making extensive use of solid spruce wood. Alongside some steel elements, timber becomes central in the market structure's identity.
Pulo Market by A9a architects
Combating loneliness and encouraging interaction in a busy, urban context were key concerns here for A9a. 'In the modern city, where [human] interaction is increasingly neglected, [a sense of] neighbourhood is especially precious, as the community atmosphere dispels the cold of winter and brings warmth and beauty [to] everyone's heart,' the architects write.
The spaces within are occupied by vegetable, fruit and seafood sellers, but also include a wealth of food and drinks options, providing a platform for anything from informal social gatherings, to business meetings. And besides its generous scale – at some 4,200 sq m – the project prioritised using recycled timber and modular building, to help promote an environmentally friendly approach.
'Children enjoy healthy food; young people feel the vibrancy; neighbours awaken past memories in chance encounters... At Pulo Market, art and creativity become the most special commodities,' write the architects.
Founded just in 2015, A9a is an energetic studio of architects, designers and thinkers, headed by founder Jio Li. Based in Chengdu and Chongqing, the practice works on projects across the board, without restrictions in scale or typology.
This is reflected in the architects’ free-spirited ethos, they explain in their statement: 'At this point, it feels unnecessary to define our thinking (if there is one) [at] A9a. We feel no urge, nor motivation, to write a philosophy of the office. We prefer to avoid talking explicitly about what we do and how we think, and [would] rather stay free from a frame of mind that could compromise the freedom necessary to work on completely different things at the same time, to evolve as quickly or slowly as necessary, to rethink established principles all over again and to continuously challenge and question ourselves.'
a-9-architects.cn (opens in new tab)
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture Editor 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) and Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020).
-
Giorgetti Spiga – The Place opens in Milan’s fashion quarter
The new Giorgetti Spiga – The Place transforms a 17th-century palazzo in Milan, showcasing the furniture company's full offering over four floors
By Maria Cristina Didero • Published
-
This futuristic ski house is born of its sloped locale
A ski house with a contemporary twist, this is House at 9,000ft by MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple in the Intermountain Region of Western USA
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
‘Crown to Couture’: Kensington Palace unveils its largest ever exhibition
‘Crown to Couture’ at Kensington Palace, London, promises a dazzling delve into royal-court and red-carpet jewellery and dressing (5 April – 29 October 2023). Its curators tell us more
By Hannah Silver • Published
-
Qujiang Museum of Fine Arts extension by Neri & Hu draws on urban monuments
The Qujiang Museum of Fine Arts extension by Neri & Hu brings together culture and retail in a sculptural terracotta-coloured structure
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
Ma Yansong on global architecture and MAD’s year ahead
We talk to MAD’s Ma Yansong about his thriving studio, global architecture and the year ahead
By Magali Robathan • Published
-
At home with Neri & Hu
Architectural super-pair Neri & Hu talk to us about what inspires them, what they are reading, and how they switch off
By Ellie Stathaki • Published
-
China’s Qingxi Culture and History Museum draws on its surrounding land
Qingxi Culture and History Museum by UAD is a cultural destination in China designed in harmony with its surroundings
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
HAS Design + Research, Thailand and China: Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2022
Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory is our annual round-up of exciting emerging architecture studios. Next up, is Thailand- and China-based HAS Design + Research
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
A multi-functional event space by Wutopia Lab celebrates daily life in the city
A Living Theatre Mount by Wutopia Lab is an exhibition, meeting and event space for developer Xuzhou Vanke in China's Jiangsu province
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated
-
Open architecture on building and China’s cultural landscape
Open Architecture’s perfectly considered projects either disappear into the landscape or become new landmarks
By Yoko Choy • Last updated
-
A Chinese industrial building transformation makes for a minimalist live/work space
The renovation of an abandoned cement factory on the southeastern coast of China by designer Wanmu Shazi resulted in a minimalist and calming live/work space
By Ellie Stathaki • Last updated