The Follies of Jinhua Architecture Park

Although The Jinhua Architecture Park opened last spring, I've been seeing references to it lately and wanted to make a quick note of it here on Modern. Borrowing from a very complete article on the Park that appeared in Five Foot Way, the project evolved like this: For this new development the artist Ai Wei Wei – son of a famous Jinhua poet who has worked with Herzog & de Meuron on several of their projects in China – was picked to design the river Yiwu wharf and a culture park south of the river. Herzog & de Meuron, who are very well known in China due in particular to the Olympic stadium under construction in Beijing, were appointed to draft the masterplan for Jindong and for a shopping centre. Ai Wei Wei later received a proposal from the city council to develop a park and a small museum on a long narrow site (80 x 2,200 metre circa) north of the river. The artist came up with a collective project, and brought in other architects and designers – 5 Chinese and 11 international – to contribute to the realisation of this green area. Seventeen public pavilions have now risen up along this strip of park, mainly utilising local materials: 17 low-budget follies, each with its own architect or designer’s cultural imprinting.

Iwan Baan's photos tell even more. (via – most recently – coolboom)