After inaugurating his first building in China – “The Building on the Water” – Álvaro Siza has just announced his second project in the country, again in collaboration with Portuguese architect Carlos Castanheira. This time the two architects will develop a museum for Hangzhou Art Academy.
The new museum - which will have approximately 15,000 sqm, a total area similar to that of Serralves Foundation building – will host an important collection of pieces from the famous German school of arts and design, Bauhaus, founded by Walter Gropius in 1919.
According to Siza, the new museum is completed and the building has already broken ground.
The Hangzhou Art Academy is located in the capital of Zhejiang province – one of the richest Chinese provinces, with 55 million people and a territory slightly wider than Portugal.
The School of Architecture from Hangzhou Art Academy is directed by Wang Shu, 2012 Pritzker Prize laureate. Shu is also involved in the project and construction of the museum; according to Castanheira, the Portuguese architects are relying on the support of Shu’s team.
Siza’s very first project on Chinese ground, which was inaugurated last Saturday, consists of an office building for the HuaiAn chemical plant, located in Jiangsu province. Read more about Siza’s first work in China here.
Via: observador.pt