Chinese architecture firm Wutopia Lab has built an art gallery enveloped by Ferrari membranes to resemble "mountain peaks" in Hainan, China.

Named Flickering Peak CP - Sun River Art Gallery, the new art gallery was completed in Coffee Village, Wanning, Hainan.

Peak overall elevation

The structure, which was constructed on the site of a coffee plantation established by Chinese immigrants from Indonesia, was covered in a semi-transparent white Ferrari membrane with three perforation rates. 

It has evolved into a cultural landmark representing miracles and hope in the community thanks to its striking visual expressions both during the day and at night.

"No, this infinitely silent world is not at all hospitable," said Thomas Mann, The Magic Mountain.

Flickering Peak plaza aerial view

The story begins with the old routine of saving the day

"The art center's prior design did not meet the client's expectations. They came to me in the hopes that I could produce a design that strikes a balance between functionality and aesthetic appeal after the previous architect ran out of ideas," said Wutopia Lab. 

"I was limited by the fact that the basement had already been built, so I was unable to change the types of beam and slab structures. The original building control lines and the structural load could not be exceeded by the new structure."

Flickering Peak night view overlook

Inspiration

During Indonesia's anti-Chinese movement, overseas Chinese who had developed coffee plantations in the past created the coffee town. By establishing a coffee factory and clearing the wilderness, they contributed to the legend surrounding the Chinese coffee industry. 

The architects were really moved by this history of persecution, exile, reclamation, return, and the working of a miracle. They saw it as a source of inspiration regarding miracles and encouragement during a difficult time in my life.

Flickering Peak overall aerial view

Awakening a Meme

The customer expressed that even though the coffee town is located in Wanning, it would be preferable if there was a view of the sea. Why couldn't the Chinese living abroad create a sea if they could create a miracle? 

Flickering Peak view from lake

The architect said that "My desire to create a sea was sparked by the arrangement of the three buildings in the original plan, which reminded me of a pool and three mountains. Using this idea, I constructed the building to represent the third mountain after Taiping Mountain and Luofu Mountain for the Aluminum Mountain project." 

"In the Sun River Coffee Town, I decided to turn the original three buildings directly into three mountains and create an artificial sea in front of the main mountain, paying tribute to the miracles of the overseas Chinese and their hope for a more prosperous and confident future," said Wutopia Lab.

Flickering Peak overall elevation

Plot: Mountain Construction

The central main building serves as the hub of the art center, while the east and west auxiliary buildings are designated as reception and office areas. The original plan called for three buildings total. 

The main building is the primary mountain, and the east and west auxiliary buildings are the secondary mountains. In front of the main mountain, the sea is formed. 

Entering the lobby of the main mountain involves strolling along the seaside boardwalk. Like a tide, the sea also pours into the lobby. There are two ways to ascend the mountain inside the lobby.

Sun River Hall

One path goes east, going through the open negotiation area, the coffee reception area, the overseas Chinese exhibition area on the second floor, and finally the outdoor seating area. Here, an outdoor staircase leads to the external platform of the third-floor multi-functional hall, while a sky bridge links it to the secondary mountain.

Another route takes the elevator straight to the third floor or climb the big steps to the mezzanine and then the second floor. 

This route meets up with the first one at the platform after going through the multipurpose hall. Both routes then ascend the outdoor stairs to the roof, where a small, secret coffee garden provides a bird's-eye view of the entire town.

Sun River Hall stair

The original box-shaped main building is transformed into an abstract layered mountain by the climbing route, which weaves together indoor and outdoor areas. 

By strengthening the main beams in certain places, one column is removed, creating more space in the lobby. All the detailed texts will evolve and improve in accordance with the clearly defined mountain construction plot.

Sun River Hall mezzanine

Addition as Subtraction

The main building, which is terraced, and the auxiliary buildings, which are grouped together according to their functions, create an uneven visual composition that makes it easy for the background buildings to cast a shadow over it. The studio made the decision to add something new and covered all three buildings with a semi-transparent shell. 

These three shells have the ability to separate from the three buildings' functional facades and independently form abstracted mountain peaks. In the end, this produces the effect of highlighting in a complicated background through subtraction.

Membrane and terraces

The shell creates a new visual boundary when it is separated from the building's climatic boundary. The area that lies between the two lines turns into a true gray area with shading. 

Experimenting with separating the climatic boundary from the visual boundary has always piqued my interest. Actually, this is based on real-world encounters with conventional Chinese architecture. 

Outdoor terrace and bridge

The book "Pulchra" will contain an article on how traditional Chinese architecture makes use of temporary structures to increase or decrease gray spaces to improve living comfort under various weather conditions.

Water-pathway-membrane

Translucent Mountains

The studio used lightweight membranes instead of the more popular perforated aluminum panels because of structural load constraints. 

Three distinct perforation rates in the Ferrari membranes cause the transparency to progressively rise from bottom to top, creating a translucent border that resembles the peaks of mountains. 

This produces a flickering effect on the roof under Hainan's intense sunlight, hence the name "flickering."

Membrane and terraces

Intertextuality

A super intertextual relationship is created between the art center and the mountain by the natural elements that have been abstracted and combined with architectural elements to form a set of intertextual texts. 

These elements include the cave and arched lobby, the mountain path and outdoor stairs, the sun and glass round windows, the entrance and skylight, the membrane structure and tree shade, the water channel and landscaping, the sea and pool, the beach and ground, the cliff and platform. 

One can learn about nature, myths, history, riddles, symbols, and even the architectural language model by analyzing these texts.

Aerial view

Gemini

During the day, the white pool naturally takes on a sense of sanctity as the white Flickering Peak reflects in it. The metamorphosis of this immediate sanctity intrigues Gemini architects. 

The studio invited lighting designers to explore materiality, or transient materiality, as the other side of sanctity in twilight. 

The translucent Flickering Peak changes into a multicolored mountain of lights, representing a variety of rich and varied desires.

Membrane and site

On the other hand, the lobby of the main mountain will feature a highly saturated lighting design. The red sun shines against a blue background, and this is the moment of Rothko's resurrection. This instant, concealed from view by the constantly shifting materiality outside, gives birth to an immediate holiness distinct from pure white.

The most philosophically significant moment in the actual application of traditional Chinese architecture is, in fact, the instantaneous, spontaneous sanctity in material life. Flickering Peak is how I chose to capture this moment.

Membrane and site

Architecture as Media (Equivalent to Text, Action, Event)

Architecture is a particular event made by a particular group of people in a particular location, at a specific time, and for a specific purpose. 

Oral storytelling, text, painting, photography, printing, video recording, and the internet are some of the tools it uses to interject itself into society. 

Sun River Hall

By entwining the reader's and author's interpretations and misinterpretations, it rewrites and influences cultural habits at specific social levels. Essentially, architecture is media.

The media welcomes Flickering Peak as a super text that combines memory, legend, myth, constraints, uncertainty (the pandemic's recurrence), setbacks, waiting, ambition, and hope, along with some common architectural knowledge and implicit knowledge and history.

Sun River Hall

"A spiritual (that is, meaningful) phenomenon is meaningful precisely because it transcends the limitations of the self, expressing and symbolizing something broader and more universal in spirit," said Thomas Mann, The Magic Mountain.

Negotiating Hall

Negotiating Hall

Membrane lighting modes

Sun River Hall lighting modes

Sun River Hall lighting modes

Sun River Hall lighting modes

Sun River Hall lighting modes

Sun River Hall lighting moments

Sun River Hall lighting moments

Sun River Hall lighting moments

Flickering Peak night aerial

Site plan

First floor plan

Second floor plan

Third floor plan

Section

Elevation

First floor plan - axonometric

Second floor plan - axonometric

Third floor plan - axonometric

Project facts

Project name: Flickering Peak CP·SUN RIVER Art Gallery

Design firm: Wutopia Lab

Chief architect: Yu Ting

Project manager: Mu Zhilin 

Project Architect: Zhan Beidi, Guo Yuchen, Yang Siqi 

Architecture construction drawing consultant: Hainan design and research Institute Co., Ltd

Interior construction drawing consultant: Dai Yunfeng, Wu Xiaoyan, Guo Jianv, Zhang Minmin, Ma Chuanchuan 

Mambrane structure concept design consultant: Bespoke. Creative Engineering Studio

Mambrane structure Development and construction: Beijing Z&T Fabric Architecture Technology Co. Ltd

Landscape designer: Chongqing Weitu Landscape Design Co., Ltd

Client: Chia Tai (Hainan) Xinglong Coffee Industry Development Co.,Ltd

Construction team: China Railway Construction Group Co., Ltd

Lighting design: Chloe Zhang

Featured model: Zhang Hanxuan

Project location: Hainan, China

Project year: March, 2022 – July, 2024

Building Area: 2606m2

Main Material: Farrari Membrane, Recycling Terrazzo, Paint

Video can be watched from here.  

Top image in the article: Flickering Peak entry path.

All images © Liu Guowei. 

All drawings © Wutopia Lab. 

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