studio zhu pei tops china's OCT art center with sweeping concrete curves

Zibo OCT Art Center by studio zhu pei 

Emerging from the landscape with dramatic architectural curves, the Zibo OCT Art Center is a new cultural complex designed by Studio Zhu Pei in an open area of the Zhangdian District, far from the city center. The project combines a cluster of porous, ring-shaped, and eaves-out stone volumes topped with concrete roofs and huddled around a central courtyard where semi-outdoor activities unfold. Hugged by an L-shaped reflective pool, the art center also welcomes an almost meditative experience that draws inspiration from traditional Chinese culture. 

‘On a rainy day, semi-outdoor activities are permitted in the corridor. The building is a sponge-like porous building, which can accommodate a large number of people, create a lot of shadows, achieve shading and shelter from the rain…,’ writes lead architect Zhu Pei. 

Zibo OCT Art Center | image © Jin Weiqi 

elevating spatial tension with rough-textured materials

While relatively simple in form, the Zibo OCT Art Center offers surprising spatial effects. Its hyperboloid roof design, for example, creates pleasant tensions indoors. Upon entering the exhibition rooms, visitors get the impression of being in a seemingly rectangular and straightforward space. As they move further in, however, the changes in roof height make certain areas feel tighter and others more expansive, resulting in an almost theatrical sense of movement that celebrates the building’s ‘strength’. 

sweeping concrete curves top the stone volumes | image © Xia Zhi

Completing the simple yet dramatic structural language is a combination of rough and richly textured materials, namely concrete and masonry stone. The roof is made of rough fair-faced concrete poured on-site, while the walls are built using a masonry stone technique commonly adopted by locals in northern China, especially in the Shandong Province.

‘The creative thinking behind Zibo Art Center is a profound experiment focusing on structural form and tectonic expressiveness. Like all my past works, while shaping porous, sponge architecture with wandering experience, it has always fascinated me to explore column-free, horizontally extended structural forms and tectonic expressiveness,’ concludes the architect. 

main entrance | image © Jin Weiqi

exhibition hall: spatial tension created by changes in roof height | image © Jin Weiqi

concrete, masonry stone, and touches of wood punctuate the interiors | image © Jin Weiqi

a reflective pool borders the complex, exuding a meditative atmosphere | image © Jin Weiqi

evening view of the central courtyard | image © Jin Weiqi

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image © Jin Weiqi

image © Xia Zhi

sunken courtyard | image © Jin Weiqi

entrance to multifunctional room | image © Jin Weiqi

semi-outdoor space | image © Xia Zhi

image © Jin Weiqi

visitors get to enjoy moments by the pool | image © Jin Weiqi

image © Xia Zhi

image © Jin Weiqi

image © Jin Weiqi

image © Jin Weiqi

image © Jin Weiqi

project info:

name: Zibo OCT Art Center 

location: Zhangdian District, Zibo, Shandong, China

design year: 2019

completion period: 2019-2020

total area: 2,471 sqm

client: Zibo OCT Group co., Ltd.

architecture & landscape design: Studio Zhu Pei | @studiozhupei

landscape design collaborator: L&A Design | @ladesign

design principal: Zhu Pei

design team: Wilson Nugroho Markhono, Yina Luo Moore,
You Changchen, Zhang Shun, Liu Yian, Ji Ming, Chen Yanhong, Liu Ling

structural and MEP: Zibo Architecture Design and Research Institute

facade consultant: King Glass Engineering co., Ltd.

lighting consultant: Ning Field Lighting Design co., Ltd.

general contractor: Taixing No.1 Construction Group co., Ltd.

photography: Jin Weiqi, Xia Zhi