The Sifang Art Museum, Nanjing, China, designed by innovative firm Steven Holl Architects, has opened its doors to the public, with the centre exploring the viewpoints, structures and materials that influence Chinese painting.

The museum is based at the opening of an architectural site in the Laoshan National Forest Park, which houses projects from the Chinese International Practical Exhibition of Architecture (CIPEA) programme.

Alongside the museum, the park will feature a conference centre created by Arata Isozaki, a hotel by Liu Jiakun, a leisure centre and a collection of residential properties.

The museum, Holl’s first project in China, incorporates the use of parallel perspective spaces and gardens, with the museum furnished in black bamboo-formed concrete.

The museum’s black-and-white colour scheme has been designed to compliment the exhibits housed inside, while the centre’s courtyard is paved in recycled Old Hutong bricks from the ancient courtyards in the centre of Nanjing.

The 30,000 sq ft museum is capped by two impressive lighted structures, which appear to hover over the museum’s base. These two structures house gallery spaces providing views across the skyline of one of China’s most ancient cities.

The Sifang Art Museum has also taken into consideration the growing need for the country to increase its usage of economically viable processes and materials by implementing a geothermal cooling and heating system, while also making use of recycled storm water.

The museum’s opening exhibition reconsiders the utopian tradition of philosophical gardens in the region, with works from the likes of He An and emerging Nanjing-based artist Li Jingxiong.

More information on the centre is available here: http://lei.sr?a=j1k4F