Huanglong Mountain·Zisha Mineral Source Museum | Atelier XÜK

Architecture Firm: Architecture School of Southeast University & Atelier XÜK

Ink has five pigments, and clay has five colors. Chinese people write with ink and cast utensils with clay, which gave birth to the Chinese culture.

The shore of Taihu Lake and the continuing range of Tianmu Mountain have created the terrain and mineral context of Dingshu.

The Chinese culture veins, the Dingshu terrain veins, and the Zisha mineral veins are the source of inspiration for the Huanglong Mountain·Zisha Mineral Source Museum. 

Project Background

Dingshu Town, which is located in the southeast of Yixing City, is well known as the "Capital of Pottery". Huanglong Mountain has been a producer of high-quality Zisha raw materials (a special type of clay) since ancient times in the history, and can be named as the "Source of Zisha". This project specifies the protection strategy for the No. 4 mine historical remains and designs the Zisha Mineral Source Museum.

No. 4 Mine

The No. 4 Zisha mine of Huanglong Mountain was first built in 1972, while stopped mining in 1997. In 2009, it was announced as a municipal cultural relic protection unit by the Yixing Municipal Government.

Protection Strategy

Reinforce, repair and protect the ruins to make it an exterior exhibition space, which is integrated with the interior exhibition hall through circulation and visual contact. The design appropriately transform it based on the principle of "Minimum intervention, Historical restoration, and Activation" to make it a reference for the protection and renewal of architectural heritage.

· Respect the ruins: Guiding tourists to discover the No. 4 Mine Ruins Site through the architectural boundaries and entrance orientation.

· Activate and regenerate the damaged area: Considering and reconnecting the damaged mountain with the landscape of the building as a whole.

·Forming entirety with the building: Connecting the exterior exhibition space of the No. 4 mine ruins with the interior exhibition touring route.

Design Concept

·Integrated Design: Strive to respect the site, rather than oppressing the environment, and guiding tourists to discover and roam naturally in the territory.

·Space for Communication and Integration: The five blocks symbolize five ‘Golden Flowers’, and the surface of the glazed tiles transforms into five-color ink. A vortex-shaped exhibition route from the ground to the earth in the museum connects the three exhibition halls on the ground floor and the underground mine tunnel into one complete space.

·Multi-media Exhibition: Using multi-media to simulate the real mining experience, so that this period of history can be reborn in a modern method.

Glazed Tiles as Surface Material

"Glazing" means applying a finishing layer to the surface of pottery to achieve the purpose of beauty, airtightness, anti-penetration, and increase strength.

The colored glaze treatment is used on the facade tiles, in order to make the facade present a rich light and shadow reflection effect. When people approach and touch it with their hands, it will evoke a rich sense of contact with the building.

Project Significance

Laozi said, "By the existence of things we profit, and by the non-existence of things we are served." Both pottery and architecture interpret the wisdom of the ancient philosophers. Therefore, the No.4 mine ruins and the museum  are just like the entity and void, weaving together the old and new.

[CHI]

墨分五色，泥有五彩。中国人以墨书写，用泥铸器，孕育了华夏文脉。

太湖之滨、天目余脉，成就了宜兴丁蜀的一方地脉、矿脉。

华夏文脉、丁蜀地脉、紫砂矿脉，正是黄龙山·紫砂矿源展示馆创作灵感的源泉所在。

项目背景

丁蜀镇位于宜兴市东南，素有“陶都”之称。黄龙山自古以来就是优质紫砂原料出产地，可谓“紫砂之源”。本项目为四号井遗址指定保护策略，并设计紫砂矿源展示馆。 

四号井遗址

黄龙山紫砂泥矿四号井建于1972 年，1997 年因生产成本过高等因素而停止开采。2009年由宜兴市政府公布为市级文保单位。

保护策略

加固、修缮、保护遗址，使之成为与展示馆为一体的室外展示场所。以“最小干预、历史复原、活化再生”为原则适当改造，使其成为建筑遗产保护与更新再生的示范案例。

·尊重遗址本身：通过自身边界与入口朝向引导游客发现四号井遗址。

·残损处活化再生：将残损的山体与建筑南面景观整体考虑。

·与建筑形成整体：在流线上将四号井遗址室外展示空间与室内游览流线贯通。

设计理念

·一体化设计：力求尊重遗址，不对遗址形成压迫，引导游客自然地发现和漫游

·交流共融的空间：五个体块象征五朵金花，均釉陶片的幕墙幻化五色墨彩。展馆内从地面到地下一条漩涡状的观览流线将地面的三个展厅和地下的矿道连成一体。

·多媒介展陈：以多媒体模拟真实的采矿体验，让这段历史以现代的形式重获新生。

表面上釉陶片

“上釉”即将釉涂布于陶器表面，以达美观、不透气、防渗透、增加强度等目的。

在立面陶片上运用均陶彩釉工艺，使立面在光线下呈现出丰富的光影效果。而走近用手触摸，会体会到不同的触感。

项目意义

老子说“ 有以为利、无以为用”，不论陶器还是建筑都诠释了先哲的智慧。展馆与遗址将新老脉络缜密地编织在一起。

Photography: Yiming Yang, Xu Zhang, Shiliang Hu