The Tea Museum, located in the Chinese city of Ya’an, is considered an iconic building that allows the Sichuan region to be placed on the national and international map and aims to bring visitors closer to the knowledge of the culture related to the cultivation and the consumption of tea.
Historically, Tea has been defined as the elixir that leads to love, art, perfection and beauty. The project seeks to generate a sensory experience where the user, sheltered by a singular and sustainable architecture, and constantly surrounded by nature, is impregnated, thanks to the latest generation technological supports, of the Chinese culture of Tea.
Thus, the idea of ​​the project revolves around 4 concepts; architectural iconicity, the concept of reflection, sustainability and interactivity. On the other hand, the 5 Wu Xing elements have also been kept in mind; earth, fire, metal, wood and water.
The museum is articulated in a set of 5 pavilions, connected to each other by sheets of water. The exit from any pavilion offers the possibility of contemplating the Tea leaf that makes up the other pavilions. The project is thus born from the same environment that surrounds it and blends completely with the tea plantations. Green roofs contribute to insulation and thermal inertia, as well as to the reuse of rainwater.
Regarding the program, each pavilion works independently and has a different theme, although they all follow a similar organization. The most significant part of the program is always placed on the ground floor, leaving the upper floor for more unique spaces. In these spaces, virtual reality and new technologies have been used in exhibition areas.
In total there are 5 pavilions; the Access Pavilion, the Exhibition Pavilion, the Tasting Pavilion, the Ceremonies Pavilion and the Elaboration Process Pavilion. At the same time, around the museum, houses have been raised for the peasants and the workers of the same museum. As a link between the houses and the museum, a Pagoda has been projected that presides over the Sculpture Park. From this, you can see the entire urban implementation, how it evolves from the organicity of the houses to the orthogonality of the plantations, and how the museum rises up with soft and sinuous forms. The sculptures, like the trees in the park, are born from the earth, allowing you to contemplate their beauty in harmony with nature. These act as a filter between the traditionality of the houses and the modernity of the museum.
The houses of the peasants have been raised based on the traditional Chinese house, with a central patio and rooms around it. The construction system is defined by a modular system that provides great flexibility and a multitude of compatible typologies, and consists of a 4mx4m bay, in which each module corresponds to a room. The modules can be interchanged to create different housing configurations.

• Date: 2020
• Area: 70000 m²
• Stage: Preliminary design
• Location: Ya’an, China