Zhou Yao Insect Museum

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist

Zhou Yao Insect Museum 

DDB Architects + Sitarch Lab

CLIENT
Ningbo Yincheng Group Co., Ltd.

DESIGN TEAM
Ying Zhao, Zixuan Huang, Wenyu Guo, Yaying Zhou, Sheng Jiang, Caixuan Lin, Rongyao Xu

CURTAIN WALL DESIGN
The Architectural Design & Research Institute Of Zhejiang University Co.ltd.

INTERIOR DESIGN
Shanghai Fengyuzhu Culture Technology Co.ltd. 

PROJECT DIRECTOR
Qingyi Ma

CONSTRUCTION DRAWING DESIGN
Ningbo Urban Construction Design & Research Institute Co.ltd.

LEAD ARCHITECT
Zhepeng Xu

PHOTOGRAPHS
Arch-exist, Quan Zhang

AREA
2986 M²

YEAR
2022 

LOCATION
Ningbo, China 

CATEFGORY
Museum

Text description provided by architect.

Built in 1996, Zhou Yao Insect Museum in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province is named after the revered father of Chinese entomology. It is the largest entomological museum in Asia that is dedicated to a person.

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects

After decades of use, it has now been relocated to Yinzhou Park (known as Ningbo's "green lung") and expanded its area from 500 square meters to more than 3,000 square meters. The museum is both a thematic museum and a memorial to Professor Zhou Yao.

The original venue was facing challenges in regard to presenting exhibitions, including outdated facilities, insufficient exhibition space, and rigid exhibition methods. The new design has tackled these challenges and presented the city with a venue that satisfies contemporary exhibition requirements.

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist

It also acts as a public platform that accommodates exhibition, education, social interaction and experience of nature. Standing comfortably in its surroundings, the design has created a welcoming public space for the city.

CONCEPT: BUTTERFLIES, THE INSPIRATION AND THE EMBODIMENT

The original concept of the design revolves around "butterflies". Inspired by the abstracted butterfly form shown in the collection, the project adopts the "butterfly triangle" as the prototype, and uses the chamfered triangle, a metaphor for butterfly wings, as the design motif in the architectural form and layout.

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects

In the meantime, the ultra-light and delicate features of the insect’s wings are well embodied in the parametric gradient glazing of the building’s skin.

Together they create a distinctive form that is not only mimetic, but also more in line with the theme of the museum.

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects

LAYOUT: TOP-TO-BOTTOM CONNECTION AND INSIDE-OUTSIDE FUSION

The spatial organization of the building is defined by the physical conditions of the site.

Through the integrated design of the indoor exhibition space and the outdoor public space, the layout of the entire site was decided, with an emphasis on the interaction with nature.

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist

At the plan level, various functions are arranged into "butterfly triangles" of varied sizes.

This recreation area, located at the north side of the building, was created by harnessing the 1m difference in elevation between the road and the park to naturally form a series of steps.

It encourages various interactions with the space and helps generate a fused indoor-outdoor experience.

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist

FACADE: ULTIMATE LIGHTNESS AND UTTERMOST DETAILS

The land restraint, the maximized use of space on the first floor and the facade design altogether create a dynamic overall image for the building.

The design takes advantage of the difference in height to create a 3D butterfly triangle; two full-height traffic spaces — the foyer and the "butterfly valley" — are created at the sides of the building.

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
southeast entrance. Image © Arch-Exist

The facade facing the city road is light, elegant and dynamic, projecting a distinct urban image; while on the side facing the waterfront, the facade appears to be dancing, the space is integrated into the park grounds and becomes the stage of the park.

The white glazed glass on the facade creates a soft, almost disappearing effect, forming a sequence of rhythm. In combination with the gradual gradient change of skin units, it weaves a facade that is as light as wings.

Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
glazed pattern at close-up level. Image Courtesy of DDB Architects

Through sophisticated parametric design control, the curtain wall components and divisions between the curtain panels are successfully hidden in the glazed patterns.


Zhou Yao Insect Museum
sections


Zhou Yao Insect Museum
elevations


Zhou Yao Insect Museum
form generation
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
design concept


Zhou Yao Insect Museum
circulation analysis
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
axonometric


Zhou Yao Insect Museum
1F plan
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
2F plan
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
Site Plan
Zhou Yao Insect Museum
curtain wall pattern analysis