The painter Zhang Da Qian was born in Neijiang. He is known as the most legendary master of Chinese painting during the 20th century.

On April 2010, Excellence group invited EMBT to design Zhang Da Qian's museum in Neijang city, the painter's hometown.

In 1956 Zhang Da Qian and Pablo Picasso met in Paris, where they exchanged ideas on art and initiated their friendship.

Neijiang city would like to continue this friendship between the two artists, and moreover between the two cities where they were born, Neijing and Malaga.

Zhang Da Qian Museum [Enric Miralles & Benedetta Tagliabue / EMBT]

The design philosophy behind the museum would be to integrate the cultural essence of east and west and to built, expressing the past and the future.

The site is located peak of Dong Tong Lu, Yuan mountain, west of Xi Lin monastery, south of Tuo River. The museum will be the landmark of the city.

The museum will grow from an existing tea-house and will extend its pavilions over and around a garden that moves topographically on different levels, enclosing part of the old trees in its interior.

Zhang Da Qian Museum [Enric Miralles & Benedetta Tagliabue / EMBT]

The motives and gestures extracted from Zhang da Qian's painting will shape the forms of the laminated bamboo ribs that conform the vertical sections, while the interpretation that the chinese painter did of Picasso face will inform the geometries of the plan. This merging of geometries from Picasso and Zhang Da Qian wants to emphasize their relationship that enhanced the two cities to perpetuate this friendship.

InformationZhang Da Qian Museum in Neijiang, Sichuan

preliminary phase
May 2010

architect
Benedetta Tagliabue. Principal
Miralles Tagliabue EMBT

EMBT Barcelona Team

director EMBT Barcelona
Daniel Rosselló

project director
Daniel Rosselló

architects
Salvador Gilabert, Joan Callís, Karl Unglaub

collaborators
Francesca Origa, Gabriele Rotelli, Verena Vogler, Vaiva Simoliunaite, Susana Oses, Davis Gertners, Ana Isabel Fernandes, Vincenzo Messina, Javier Rivero Carnota, David Mas Trigueros, David Ricardo Ramírez, Evangelia Anamourlogluo, Maria Ioanna Barka, Fabian Vargas, Pauline Suhr, Enrique Franco, Claudia Paola Martinez, Dean Mapeso, Rebeca Pérez Casterà,

EMBT Shangai Team

director embt shanghai
Igor Peraza

project director
Igor Peraza

collaborators
Qiwei Hu, Chen Hao, Dee Liu, Pey Lung, Kathrine E. Thoen

client
Shen Zhen Excellence Kang He Investment and Development Pty., Ltd.