OPEN's UCCA Dune Art Museum in Qinhuangdao, China, was awarded the “Best in Buildings Under 1,000 Square Metres" Winner of the 2019 AZ Awards, at the Awards Gala held in Toronto on June 21. 

This year, the AZ Awards attracted 1,175 submissions from 50 countries. The judging panel comprised of 5 leading figures in the architectural and design fields including Pritzker Prize winner Thom Mayne. After two rounds of careful reviews and evaluations, 20 standout winners were selected from different categories, among which are many exceptional works by pre-eminent architectural studios, including Helsinki Central Library Oodi by ALA Architects, and 520 West 28th by Zaha Hadid Architects.

“The Dune Art Museum embodies a unique relationship between interior and exterior. The space speaks of the place, and the materiality coherently fosters the concept.” ——Stefano Pujatti, the jury member 

Pure, simple and touching, the UCCA Dune Art Museum is a sanctuary for Nature and Art. Its design seeks a return to primal and timeless forms of space, and explores fresh possibilities for the experience of viewing art. Innovatively forming the space into a series of inter-connected, organic-shaped cells, and deliberately hiding the architecture under the sand dune in order to protect this fragile and critical natural component of the coast from the area’s encroaching real-estate developments, the Museum’s design is deeply committed to the site’s natural ecology and environment, and creates an engaging and non-traditional encounter with art and nature.

The UCCA Dune Art Museum has also been recognized as Iconic Awards Best of Best by German Design Council in 2017 for its concept design, and named 2019 Building of the Year by Archdaily.

Project Facts

Design Year: 2015 - 2018 Status: Completed Client: Aranya Operator: UCCA Program: Reception, Café, Community Room, Exhibition Spaces, Outdoor Exhibition, Roof Terrace Building Area: 930 m² Location: Qinhuangdao, China

Credits

Architects: OPEN Architecture Principals in Charge: LI Hu, HUANG Wenjing Project Team: ZHOU Tingting (Project Architect), WANG Mengmeng, HU Boji, FANG Kuanyin, Joshua PARKER, LU Di, LIN Bihong, YE Qing, Steven SHI, JIA Han Local Design Institute: CABR Technology Co., Ltd. Lighting Design: X Studio, School of Architecture, Tsinghua University, China + OPEN Architecture Photographs: WU Qingshan, TIAN Fangfang, NI Nan, Zaiye Studio

About OPEN

OPEN is a passionate team of designers collaborating across different disciplines to practice urban design, landscape design, architectural design, and interior design, as well as the research and production of design strategies in the context of new challenges. We believe in the innovative power of architecture to transform people and the way they live, while striking a new balance between the manmade and nature. OPEN was founded by LI Hu and HUANG Wenjing in New York City. It established its Beijing office in 2008. Some built and ongoing projects by OPEN include: the Gehua Youth and Cultural Center, Garden School/Beijing No.4 High School Fangshan Campus, Tsinghua Ocean Center, Pingshan Performing Arts Center, Tank Shanghai, UCCA Dune Art Museum, Chapel of Sound, and Qingpu Pinghe International School. OPEN has been widely recognized for its innovative work. Recent awards the firm received include the 2019 P/A Awards (USA), 2018 AIA Education Facility Design Award of Excellence (USA), 2018 Civic Trust Awards (UK), 2017 Iconic Awards Best of Best (Germany), 2016 Interior Design’s Best of Year (USA), 2015 AIANY Design Award (USA), 2015 London Design Museum’s Design of the Year Nomination (UK), and the Winning Prize of the WA Awards for Chinese Architecture, among many others. OPEN has been invited to participate in many important international exhibitions, such as China House Vision in Beijing in 2018, “Soul of the City” in Verona, Italy in 2017, the inaugural Chicago Architecture Biennial in 2015, and the Chinese pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2014

About AZ Awards

Launched in 2011 by AZURE, a leading North American magazine focused on contemporary architecture and design, AZ Awards is an international competition ‘recognizing excellence and innovation, and showcasing the world’s best projects, products and ideas.’ It has grown in impact to become a significant international benchmark for design excellence.