China’s Chongqing Guotai Arts Center draws inspiration from various sources such as the white fig tree and traditional Chinese architecture.
Construction took 8 years but its history began in 1937 when the Chongqing Theater was founded.
The Arts Center is important to locals due to its history and the performances that took place at the Theater. It’s meaningful to the project team as they dedicated 8 years to the construction process (normally a project of this scale would not take so long).
It’s located in the busy Liberation Monument area which is the core business district of the city.
From a distance, the building resembles a white fig tree which is common in Chongqing. Architect Jing Quan compares the design concept to the UK Pavilion. The main difference is that the Chongqing Guotai Arts Center uses rods instead of points to form the surface.
The method of layering seen with the rods is not new and can be witnessed in traditional Chinese architecture. It is, however, a contemporary take on it.
The rods are glossy black and matte red. Red symbolizes the warm-hearted personalities of Chongqing people, black represents the Bayu origin history.
Chongqing is cold in the winter and hot in the summer. Only about 30% of the rods support the structure, about 40% are utilized to serve the AC system as outlets and vents.
