PROGRAM_ Showroom, Commercial
CLIENT_ Zhong Lei Group
AREA_ 2,400 SQM
STATUS_ Complete
CONTRACT_ Architecture Concept
CREDITS_ Assoc. C.Huang, Assoc. J.Kwong, Pekka Salminen, PESARK
In ancient China, silk had an important place among the goods transported through the sea routes. This is why the maritime trade route was later called the Maritime Silk Road.
Quanzhou, in the Fujian Province on the west coast of the Taiwan Strait, was the starting point of the Maritime Silk Road. Via this sea route, ancient China traded and exchanged goods and cultural influences with foreign countries.
Later, the increasing demand for pottery and porcelain products by other countries reached such a level that this route was often referred to as the Maritime Ceramic or Porcelain Road.
As of the 14th century, Chinese porcelain was also transported to Europe through these maritime routes.
Porcelain was so clearly associated with China that porcelain tableware is still referred to as “china” in the English language. Just as the Maritime Ceramic Road started on the west coast of the Strait, we believe that the Shanghai Ceramic Museum could become an important contemporary example of the cultural exchange between China and Europe.
It could become a starting point for the new Maritime Ceramic Road, now conveying and combining design traditions and ideas between China and Europe.