Located in Pingle, Qionglai, Sichuan, the M50 Art Hotel project takes inspiration from "music," aligning with Pingle Ancient Town's master plan as a music-themed town. In this design, MUDA-Architects sought to activate the local cultural DNA, creating an iconic, forward-looking landmark that honors historical context while engaging with the future.
Plucking the Strings
MUDA sought to further explore the relationship between architecture and music. Researching local history revealed that the legendary love story of Zhuo Wenjun and Sima Xiangru unfolded in Qionglai, where Sima Xiangru won Zhuo Wenjun's heart with his classic guqin composition, "The Phoenix Seeking his Mate" (Feng Qiu Huang). Drawing from this piece, the design references the legendary guqin named "Luqi" used to play it. By abstracting the movement of plucking strings, the architects translated this gesture into architectural form. The final architectural form captures the strings frozen at the climax of the performance, responding to the theme of "architecture as a musical rest."
The building's volume is generated by several rhythmic curves, with flowing surfaces that reflect the ethereal and dynamic rhythm of music. The building spans a total length of 80 meters, with an average width of 20 meters and a maximum height of 18 meters. The exterior curtain wall is composed of horizontally subdivided aluminum panels; the gaps between these panels absorb the curvature variations of the organic form, ensuring precise control over the curtain wall's execution. Additionally, the segmented horizontal aluminum panels evoke the joints of bamboo, paying homage to the Sichuan region's rich bamboo culture.
The main entrance is positioned beneath the most dramatic wave of the form, symbolizing the climax of the musical movement. Here, dynamic curves define a flowing opening, where transparent glass and structural glass fins are utilized to maximize transparency. Two secondary entrances, located on the shorter sides of the building, employ the same design language.
The facade on the guestroom balcony side further extends this design concept. Featuring cantilevered curved balconies that overlap across different levels, this facade creates a highly rhythmic spatial and textured effect. This approach satisfies the functional requirements of a resort hotel while reinforcing the overall design intent of aligning architecture with musical rhythm.
Layout and Program
The four-story building designates the ground floor as a public zone, featuring a reception area, lobby bar, café, tearoom, and hot spring pools. The second through fourth floors primarily host the guestrooms. A rooftop sky garden, complete with a bar and a reflecting pool, offers guests a premium leisure experience.
Site preparation is currently underway. The main structure is expected to top out in December 2019, with the hotel scheduled to open in August 2020.
- Project Location: Qionglai, Sichuan
- Design Area: 5,000 sq m
- Design Period: 2018–2019
- Expected Construction Start: October 2019
- Client: Qionglai Tianrui Tourism Development Co., Ltd.
- Architecture Firm: MUDA-Architects
- Lead Architect: Lu Yun
- Design Team: Lu Yun, Xu Jiandan, Liu Jingyi, Sun Qiming, Heyu Lu, He Yixiu, Liu Xiaoqiao, Mei Yixuan, Rong Dian, Zhou Shangyun
This article was written by 舒岳康 - SHU Yuekang. The translation is powered by AI.
