Architects von Gerkan, Marg and Partners (gmp) have built a zigzagged museum as an extension of public park on the northern outskirts of Zhengzhou, China.

Named Yellow River National Museum, the 100,300-square-metre museum was designed to not only explore the cultural significance of the river but also examine its impact on shaping the surrounding landscape.

The Yellow River is often regarded as the cradle of Chinese civilization. Both the museum building and the adjacent park follow the winding path of the 5,000-kilometer-long river, creating a physical and conceptual bridge between nature and civilization. In this space, architecture and landscape seamlessly merge into one.

The new museum, which connects the surrounding natural spaces into a unified whole, rises from the undulating riverfront terrain in a streamlined form at the center of Yellow River National Cultural Park.  

The Museum's green roof, which extends into the public park, leads up to a 40-meter-high observation platform with views of Zhengzhou to the south and the Yellow River to the north. 

Visitors can explore the river's distinctive landscape habitats with their natural plants along meandering rooftop walkways dotted with picnic places, an outdoor theater, and exhibition spaces. 

The polygonal structure spans a park watercourse and rises and dips softly. The building's light-filled center is a sculptured atrium located at the crossing point. A curtain of falling water can be used to accentuate this core area.  

A modular system of prefabricated parts was used to construct the museum's natural stone curtain wall façade, which features sculptural relief and a vertical rhythm. 

The rhythmic texture of the façade is intended to mimic the river's flow. The exhibition spaces are protected from direct sunlight, while the public areas are interspersed with thin vertical windows that let in natural light. 

On the north side, three sizable windows frame expansive views of the surroundings and allude to the famous cave dwellings of the Yellow River. 

The main entrance, a glazed aperture that seems to be cut straight out of the enormous volume, is located on the south side beneath the building's tallest point. 

The interior of the museum is equally striking, with curved walls that resemble eroded rock and gently reflecting yellowish ceilings that welcome visitors. The outside and ceiling are clothed in quietly shimmering yellow-toned brass.

Masterplan

First floor plan

Ground floor plan

Section

Section

gmp completed a new station with the rhythm of the arcs in Nanchang, China. In addition, the firm completed the conversion of a 1940s Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, known as Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, in Madrid, Spain. Moreover, the firm completed the refurbishment of a 1969s multi-purpose hall, known as The Hyparschale in Magdeburg, Germany. 

Project facts

Project name: Yellow River National Museum

Competition: 2020, 1st prize

Design: Meinhard von Gerkan and Stephan Schütz with Stephan Rewolle

Project Lead: Sui Jinying, Zhai Chengcheng

Design Team: Sebastian Beyer, Fan Yibing, Huang Han, Li Zhihui, Song Xiajun, Tang Zihong, Wang Jiaxin, Yang Li, Yuan Tao, Zhu Shiyou

Project Management, China: Li Ling, Wang Shihui

Partner Practice in China: China Academy of Building Research (CABR)

Landscape Architecture: gmp with Rehwaldt Landscape Planning & Design (Beijing)

Lighting Design: Conceptlicht

Façade Consultants: SUP Beijing

Client: Henan Zhengzhou Development Culture and Tourism Investment

GFA: 100,300m2

Exhibition area: 40,000m2

All images © Marcus Bredt.

All drawings © gmp.

> via gmp

cultural building gmp museum Zhengzhou