The Chinese consumer market has matured, especially in the country’s increasing number of so-called first-tier cities, such as Hangzhou. Here, city dwellers have developed refined sensibilities, and companies have had to step up their game to keep clients engaged. An interesting concept which has recently popped up in this affluent coastal city is JIA Garden. A hybrid venture, it’s an exhibition space and artefacts shop, measuring a spacious 509 sqm. (5,479 sq.ft.) set across two floors of a modern building in Junyuan Gongyuanli, a new upscale commercial estate which is close to the manicured lawns of a park and the more lush greens of the historically significant Xixi National Wetland Park in the western Xihu district of the city. The interior design, created by local spatial design practice Mountain Soil, is minimalist with contrasting raw edges, and quite literally so.
The ground floor is lofty and airy, and strategic ceiling cut-outs, which reveal parts of the building’s concrete shell, further boost the sense of spaciousness. The central display table simplifies complex forms by adopting the basic shape of plant leaf, while underneath, a landscape of rocks is placed, supplemented by limestones as the auxiliary with preservation of its rugged textures, forming an intriguing biophilic scenery. JIA Garden‘s ground floor anchors the design concept, and from here, a circular route around the central axis leads to the upper garden by way of a narrow staircase on the side. The second floor boasts three different sections, or gardens in true JIA Garden parlance, can be found, divided by uneven walls.
The Meeting Garden is, as said, connected with the ground floor, featuring a conversational space in between the architecture and its structure. It’s comprised of a planar cantilevered semi-circular arc that extends upward, juxtaposed with layered display and storage function. The Wandering Garden is the central section with display surfaces growing from the ground ‘cracks’ in an organised manner. The design offers the perspective of altered heights and also allows displaying utensils of various sizes. The deepened texture and material combinations aim to utilise the natural scenery as part of the interior, blurring the boundaries. Last but not least, there’s the Lingering Garden, an area designed for large art installations and to host events, and as such facilities such as a bar and equipment has been embedded in the setting. © superfuture
JIA Garden
Junyuan Gongyuanli, Chongyi Lu, Block 1, Unit 1, Room 101 (Xihu)
310030 Hangzhou
Publishers Note
Just to be clear – superfuture® is a design blog and not a political commentator. No surprise there. The scope of our content has always been global and borderless, however that can often mean covering projects in countries where we will not agree with the politics or actions of those countries. In a world that’s as screwed up as ever right now, the focus of our support is to those designers, architects and other creatives who aim to make the world a more liveable one – as opposed to people that try their hardest to destroy it. So if a project hits our desk and we like it based on its design credentials, we may choose to publish regardless of its location or creators nationality. superfuture® has always been inclusive and hopes for all current wars, aggression, violence, hate and extremism to end.
