Shanghai Natural History Museum

Shanghai Natural History Museum

Shanghai Natural History Museum

This project for the Shanghai Natural History Museum is consistent with Chinese garden design in that it approaches the spirit of nature, but does not imitate it. Through its relationship to the site, it represents the harmony of man and nature and is an abstraction of the basic elements of Chinese art and design. The museum sits adjacent to an urban sculpture park. The shape and building organization are inspired by the nautilus shell, one the purest geometric forms found in nature. 

A spiraling landscaped plane rises out of the park recalling the harmonious forms and proportions of the nautilus shell. This plane terminates in a roof deck which provides views of the park and surrounding city. Within this spiraling plane is an oval courtyard which contains a stepped garden composed of rock formations and water features which recalls the tradition of the “Mountain Water Garden.” 

This courtyard serves as an orientation device for the exhibition areas which spiral down below grade. The landscaping concept integrates the museum into the landscape of the existing sculpture park while also reinforcing its message. Plant groupings of wild and untamed species and rock formations act as metaphors of the primordial forest. Paving composed of multidirectional stone shapes recall the tectonic plates of the earth. This surface acts as the tabula rasa of the scheme as it rises out of the park setting. The museum will be a bioclimatic building which responds to the sun using an appropriately oriented intelligent building skin to maximize daylight and minimize solar gain. 

The pond in the oval courtyard will provide evaporative cooling while the temperature of the earth will provide heating and cooling by using a geothermal system. Rain water will be collected from the vegetated roof and stored in the pond along with recycled grey water. All of the energy features of the museum will be part of exhibits which will explain the story of the museum. The facades express the museum's message and content. The structural network and sunscreen lining the curved inner façade facing the oval courtyard, are an abstraction of patterns found in traditional Chinese garden pavilions and also suggest human cell organization. The north wall suggests the layering of tectonic plates. 

The east wall is a living wall, bringing the horizontal plane of the park onto the vertical surface, forming an arcade and representing the vegetation of the earth’s surface. These features focus our awareness on the fundamental elements of the natural world: plants, earth and water.

Shanghai Natural History Museum Graphic files:

Article by: Architecture Design

with permalink: http://www.architecturedesign.tk/2015/02/shanghai-natural-history-museum.html
Copier right must be with the original url of post / powered by Archi2o.

Architecture DESIGN INSPIRATION Modern Architecture modern museum Museum 7:01 AM