Abstract
The Taizhou Contemporary Art Museum, designed by Atelier Deshaus, stands as an abandoned concrete ruin in the midst of the little-known Shamen Grain Depot Cultural and Creative Park, one of the n-fold Chinese former productive sites regenerated as cultural, creative and commercial parks. Forgotten, because it is unused and lacking any specific cultural programme at the time of writing; a ruin, because of Deshaus' unapologetic brutalism, or brutality. The building displays a sophisticated formality resulting from a strong volumetric character, the consistent use of reinforced concrete vaulting for vertical and horizontal enclosures and a subtle relationship with the context. The present essay examines this project in a multi-scalar fashion. First, it briefly delves into Taizhou and Jiaojiang's district urban development; then, it links the district's transformation to the conversion of the Shamen Grain Depot into a cultural and creative park. Finally, it considers how the museum relates to the surroundings, its architectural meaning, how it sits in Atelier Deshaus' body of works and its meaning as a new (empty) ruin for the urban memory of Taizhou.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | The Art of Remembering |
Subtitle of host publication | Urban Memories, Architecture and Agencies in Contemporary China |
Publisher | Taylor and Francis |
Pages | 191-210 |
Number of pages | 20 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9781040015254 |
ISBN (Print) | 9781032745305 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 2024 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Engineering
- General Arts and Humanities
- General Social Sciences