Songyang Folk Museum

Agency: Guang-Shi-Pu-Luo-Zhao-Ming-She-Ji-You-Xian-Gong-Si
Client: Zhejiang Wenfei Travel development Co., LTD

Songyang Folk Museum is nestled on the hillside of the Chenjiapu villager residential area. The museum has two floors and covers an area of approximately 279 square meters. The museum has three functions: folk culture display, accompanying reception and services, and the museum curator’s collection exhibit.

The design philosophy embraces the principle of "seeking common ground while preserving differences," identifying the unifying principle for the lighting as pertains to all three functions, while simultaneously emphasizing the uniquely illuminating expression of each, highlighting their uniqueness. A warm, homely theme pervades the atmosphere, a theme bestowed by the lighting. The space features clean, unadorned concrete as its foundation, while partitions and wall surfaces are ingeniously crafted from repurposed old doors and windows. Furniture and objects, too, whisper tales of lived experience. Light cascades from skylights and partition tops, gently diffusing across walls and ceilings, bathing the entire space in a soft, inviting glow that evokes the comforting embrace of home. The living room features a partially open ceiling of glass, inviting a flood of natural light into the space. Upward-directed lighting creates a sense of transparency and brightness at night, contrasting strikingly with the antique packed earth construction of the indoor setting. To prevent glare and preserve the harmonious flow of the interior’s style, old window frames are repurposed as anti-glare grilles. Three sets of antique furniture along the central axis are illuminated with varying degrees of brightness, establishing a visual hierarchy. The threshing machine in the center takes the spotlight, followed by the central hall furniture, and lastly, the table and chairs at the entrance, which are bathed in a softer glow. This play of light and shadow enhances the depth of the space, drawing visitors to explore more deeply. Gentle light graces the windows behind the bed and the hanging marriage certificate, while the bed itself remains relatively shadowed, adding a touch of authenticity. The museum boasts bed and breakfast accommodations, the reception desk bathed in a warm, welcoming glow. The interplay of upper and lower layers of light – linear upward diffusion on the first floor and projection hidden behind the concrete beam on the ground floor – illuminates a background wall crafted from old door panels and spliced panes, evoking the patina of time. The museum curator's exhibits are meticulously displayed in cabinets and racks gracing the space. Here, we designed a lighting system specifically tailored to showcases and objet d’ art of varying sizes, ensuring these precious pieces receive deserved attention, transforming them into the protagonists of the space’s story. The decorative lanterns on the showcases, cleverly integrated with the overall lighting schema, not only minimizes the number of lanterns necessary but also perfectly complements the spatial theme. At night, when other lights are dimmed, only the lanterns remain lit, fulfilling the necessary lighting requirements for the bed and breakfast, but more impressively, transforming the museum into a mesmerizing large-scale light installation.