Architects: Dazhou And Associates
Area: 387 m²
Year: 2023
Photography: Dong Image, Fangfang Tian
Lead Architects: Tang Dazhou
Design Team: Dazhou and Associates
Engineering: Chen Xuejian
Clients: Noya Team
Program: Museum & Exhibition Interiors, Gallery
City: Hai Kou Shi
Country: China
APM Gallery in Haikou, designed by Dazhou and Associates, transforms a commercial block into a community art space. Completed in 2023, this 387 m² gallery aims to infuse contemporary art into the community, revitalizing the area. Featuring a newly built, two-story building with a pitched roof, the design includes corridors and a courtyard to guide visitors. The structure stacks three volumes with overhangs, blending the new facade with the original building. Two distinct galleries, the Black Gallery and the White Gallery, provide diverse exhibition spaces. The gallery’s design responds to Haikou’s sunlight and humid weather, creating a dynamic visual experience.
In early 2021, the Noya team proposed a renovation scheme for Haikou Gaoxingli. Dazhou and Associates completed the design for two landmark buildings, NOYARD and APM. APM, situated on the east side of the block, was a newly constructed two-story building with a pitched roof. The architects aimed to transform it into a community art gallery, bringing contemporary art into the neighborhood and revitalizing the block’s east side.
Addressing the site, the design includes corridors and a courtyard. Given APM’s location in a commercial block, it was not intended as a traditional art palace. Instead, modestly scaled corridors encircle the original building, guiding foot traffic and inviting people to approach. Openings in the ground-level exhibition walls allow passersby to see indoor artworks, fostering curiosity. The circular corridors lead to a central courtyard, envisioned as a future outdoor exhibition and event space.
The gallery’s structure features stacking and arraying elements. From the corridors, three volumes stack gracefully, each overhanging to bypass the original building’s eaves. These large volumes blur the floor divisions, giving the gallery a sculptural yet modest presence. The new structural system integrates with the original building, creating a regular vertical division on the facade. This design echoes the weathered steel plates of the red brick buildings, enhancing the gallery’s appeal over time.
The gallery includes two distinct spaces: the Black Gallery and the White Gallery. The ground-floor Black Gallery melds indoor and outdoor experiences with its dark steel plates casting serene light and shadow. The upstairs White Gallery, preferred by curators, features controllable lighting and space, with an open roof inviting daylight. Together, these spaces enrich APM’s offerings, expanding the potential of the art gallery.
Haikou’s abundant sunlight and humid weather shape APM’s character. On sunny days, light dances on its rusted steel plate facade, creating shadows. On rainy days, APM resembles a silent leviathan, crouching at the end of the block, breathing deeply and calmly.
Project Gallery
Project Location
Address: 18 Gaoxingli, West Gaodeng Street, Qiongshan District, Haikou City, Hainan Province, China
Location is for general reference and may represent a city or country, not necessarily a precise address.
