{"id":1975,"date":"2025-08-25T06:45:56","date_gmt":"2025-08-25T06:45:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/?p=1975"},"modified":"2025-08-25T10:20:14","modified_gmt":"2025-08-25T10:20:14","slug":"kong-xiangwei-studios-flying-bird-art-gallery-frames-the-rolling-tea-gardens-of-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/2025\/08\/25\/kong-xiangwei-studios-flying-bird-art-gallery-frames-the-rolling-tea-gardens-of-china\/","title":{"rendered":"kong xiangwei studio\u2019s flying bird art gallery frames the rolling tea gardens of china"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dali Wuliangshan Flying Bird Art Gallery<\/h2>\n

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The Dali Wuliangshan Flying Bird Art Gallery, designed by Kong Xiangwei Studio, is located on Phoenix Mountain in Yunnan, China<\/strong><\/a>. Set within the northern foothills of the Wuliang Mountain National Nature Reserve, the gallery<\/strong><\/a> and observatory<\/strong><\/a> emerges at an elevation of 2,300 meters (7,545 feet) in a landscape known for its canyon terrain, warm air currents, and role as a vital migratory corridor for birds across East Asia.<\/p>\n

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The mountain has long hosted one of China\u2019s most significant bird banding research sites. Over twenty-five years, more than 67,000 birds from 304 species have been tagged, building a detailed ecological archive of the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. This deep history of observation forms the cultural and ecological foundation for the new gallery.<\/p>\n

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Phoenix Mountain is also blanketed by an 87-hectare organic tea plantation, where terraces of greenery stretch across rolling slopes. Within this cultivated landscape, smart feeding stations and bird-watching hides already create a careful dialogue between humans and migratory life.<\/p>\n

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images \u00a9 Kong Xiangwei Studio, Archi-Translator Photography<\/p>\n

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a light-touch intervention by Kong Xiangwei Studio<\/h2>\n

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The project by Kong Xiangwei Studio arises within a courtyard complex that includes guesthouses and a single-story caf\u00e9. To establish a cultural center for the complex, the existing caf\u00e9 was chosen as the base for the gallery. Its foundations allowed Kong Xiangwei Studio to insert a new architectural element while maintaining minimal impact on the existing structures.<\/p>\n

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The design adopts a principle of ‘light-touch intervention.’ A lightweight steel structure was placed above the original caf\u00e9, creating a new second floor. Its form, resembling outstretched wings, is immediately legible in the landscape. The sharply pointed apex and open span convey a sense of suspension, as though the building itself were caught mid-flight within the valley. This approach transforms the gallery into both a functional cultural space and a sculptural landmark.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Kong Xiangwei Studio built the gallery above an existing caf\u00e9 within a courtyard complex<\/p>\n

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inviting the tea gardens in<\/h2>\n

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The ground floor of Kong Xiangwei Studio’s art gallery retains the caf\u00e9, while the upper level functions as the exhibition space. Here, transparency defines the architecture: expansive glazing dissolves boundaries, allowing the tea gardens, forests, and distant valleys to flow into the room. Photographs of migratory birds are displayed on freestanding walls, positioned so that visitors glimpse living birds in flight beyond the glass as they view the still images inside.<\/p>\n

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The central spatial feature is the pointed apex, supported by the steel frame and recessed to dramatic depth. It frames the valley in a single sweeping view, immersing visitors in the landscape. In sunlight, the white structure channels light into the gallery, while in fog, it softens into a diffused vessel of mist.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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the lightweight steel structure resembles wings suspended over the valley<\/p>\n

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transparent glazing draws views of tea gardens and distant mountains into the interior<\/p>\n

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photographs of migratory birds are displayed on freestanding walls inside the gallery<\/p>\n

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the gallery punctuates a cultural loop alongside bird watching hides and the tea plantation<\/p>\n

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the soaring pointed apex frames the valley and channels shifting light conditions<\/p>\n

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the design emphasizes ‘light-touch intervention’ using the existing foundation<\/p>\n

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project info:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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name:\u00a0<\/strong>Dali Wuliangshan Flying Bird Art Gallery<\/p>\n

architect:\u00a0<\/strong>Kong Xiangwei Studio<\/p>\n

location: <\/strong>Fenghuangshan Tea Village, Bixi Township, Nanjian County, Dali Prefecture, Yunnan, China<\/p>\n

designers:<\/strong> Kong Xiangwei, Cui Jun, Gao Zhuojian
\nphotography:<\/strong> \u00a9 Kong Xiangwei Studio, \u00a9 Archi-Translator Photography | @archi_translator<\/a><\/p>\n

The post kong xiangwei studio’s flying bird art gallery frames the rolling tea gardens of china<\/a> appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dali Wuliangshan Flying Bird Art Gallery   The Dali Wuliangshan […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1977,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[12],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1975"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1975"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1975\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1984,"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1975\/revisions\/1984"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1977"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.macdolphins.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}