LUO Studio designs Exhibition Hall in China drawing inspiration from traditional techniques and ecological considerations

The design Rehmannia Root Crafts Exhibition Hall is a result of on-site research, aligning with the traditional built environment, and modern requirements.

Project: Prepared Rehmannia Root Crafts ExhibitionHall

Location:
China

Architects:
LUO Studio

Typology:
Cultural Architecture

Area:1,463m²

In the western part of Henan Province within Jiaozuo City, China lies Xiuwu County, with unique soil and climate conditions, and renowned as a production base of ‘Four traditional Chinese medicine herbs’. Rehmannia (also called “Di Huang” in Chinese), with its significant medicinal and economic value being one of them, has garnered much attention for the related industries in the county.

The project highlights the use of locally sourced materials, modular construction, and traditional building techniques, reducing environmental impact and supporting the local economy. The design optimizes natural light, reducing energy consumption while enhancing the visitor experience. By incorporating renewable timber and the “furniture as structure” concept, the project minimizes material waste and promotes efficient space utilization. Additionally, it preserves cultural heritage by using traditional construction methods and revitalizes the local economy by diversifying rural industries into tourism, e-commerce, and wellness. This holistic approach integrates environmental, economic, and cultural sustainability for long-term community development.

Conceptual Shift from “Factory” to “Exhibition Hall”

The Ice Chrysanthemum Plantation in Houyanmen Village illustrates the success of the medicinal herb industry, which is supported by the local government of Xiueu County. Provincial funds were used to develop the infrastructure for processing, drying, and exhibiting Rehmannia root products. LUO Studio was commissioned to design the exhibition hall to showcase local crafts.

LUO studio actively communicated with and persuaded the stakeholders to embrace a different design approach that embodies the attributes of an exhibition hall, while drawing in the local characteristics and ecological consideration.

On-site research on the processing techniques of Rehmannia roots, led by the design team helped them to understand the traditional ways of processing this medicinal herb, in which natural light for the sun-drying methodology, played a major role. This concept played a pivotal role in shaping the Exhibition Hall, ‘light’ becoming the central theme of the building generating dynamic changes both inside and outside.

The circular form enhances the play of changing light and shadow. The design captured this with the form of the building, which is almost circular with a polygon on the plan, avoiding arcs for precision and efficiency in construction while creating a curvy effect through straight lines. Rather than bringing in the light through windows, the daylight enters the building through ceiling eaves, ceilings, and planned gaps between walls.

The project adopts a nearly circular plane, forming an inscribed circle with a diameter of 37 meters. The periphery of the inscribed circle becomes the circulation route for visitors. Such a layout strategy helps effectively streamline subsequent work in exhibition arrangement and thus reduces cost, which is essential in rural construction.

The 37m diameter central column frame is a cost-effective structural solution that allows dynamic variations in spaces and scale, creating distinct ‘ring’ zones. The outer ring incorporates enclosure walls with wooden structures, ideal for display boards. The middle ring, a shelving area for Rehmannia root products, features densely organized structural units for stability and storage. The expansive inner ring includes a circular, stepped seating area for health and wellness activities. A central skylight enhances natural lighting and emphasizes the core design.

Inspired by the local traditional techniques, especially the ‘furniture as structure’ strategies, large-section columns are transformed into small-section column arrays, stacked vertically and horizontally to secure secondary small wooden beams.

Following the framework of the 18-sided polygon of the plane, the exhibition hall repositions one endpoint of each side towards the center of the inscribed circle, aligning it perpendicularly to the extension line of the structural columns. When viewed from the exterior, the adjoining side walls are staggered. The varied gaps between the 18 walls allow natural light to filter in and create a visually captivating interplay of light and shadow within the space. Viewed from the interior, a distinctive 2.5m-diameter hole emerges at the center of the dome, which is formed by the deliberate organization of columns and beams.

Red bricks produced in the town are the primary materials for the villagers building their homes due to their cost-effectiveness. The project uses these local red bricks in the enclosure walls and internal partition walls, constructed by local craftsmen using traditional masonry techniques. The combination of the local red-brick masonry wall techniques with the engineered wood frame structure enhances both the structural integrity and durability while aligning with the traditional built environment in the village. This approach ensures that the rural industry display building not only meets spatial quantity requirements but also delivers high-quality spatial aesthetics.