HSIN-CHU, TAIWAN, R.O.C (1998)
Glory Yeh is an important collector of art of the new Chinese/Taiwanese avantgarde. The importance of this new work is now beginning to become recognized even in the world of Western culture. Important exhibitions of this emerging mode of expression have been held in the USA and Europe. In order to make his private collection more accessible to his compatriots, Glory Yeh has commissioned Emilio Ambasz to design a new museum in the city of Hsin-Chu, the capital of Taiwan's 'Silicon Valley.' For Ambasz, the conception of the museum has provided new possibilities to express his longings for an architecture which is reconciled with nature, adding to his 'natural architecture' vocabulary a further element of interest: the theme of the roof/facade. Thanks to this unique idea, the visitors will find themselves immersed in a spatial continuum that revolves tightly inside and outside the museum, integrating the sculpture garden around it with that on its roof/facade. The emphasis on the ceremonial entry to the grand hall for public events gives further proof of the important cultural role that the new museum is called to play in the context of Taiwanese society. With its 100,000 sq.ft., and the great flexibility of the exhibition spaces, this building reveals strong innovative characteristics.