The “He Zhenliang and Olympic Exhibition Hall” is located within Furong Lake Park on the banks of the Grand Canal in Wuxi City. The site is surrounded by lush greenery and embraced by streams in front. This building retains the structural features of industrial buildings from the 1960s and 70s, serving as a successful example of the combination of industrial heritage preservation and cultural transmission. The establishment of the “He Zhenliang and Olympic Exhibition Hall” aims to promote the Olympic spirit, preserve valuable historical materials, and express sincere respect for He Zhenliang, the “Mr. Olympic of China” from Wuxi. Mr. He had a deep affection for buildings from his youth, hence the choice of the original plastic factory warehouse in the newly renovated Furong Lake Park as the site for the exhibition hall. This choice reflects his rooted cultural consciousness while recording the city’s cultural context, legends, and growth.

“Architecture is the history of stone.” The charm of architecture lies in its close relationship with the environment and culture. The main building originally had the appearance of a brick-and-tile industrial structure. In our design, we preserved the main structure, which was basically intact, and expanded it according to the needs of the exhibition hall’s functions. The completed exhibition hall forms an integrated whole with the original building in terms of volume, spatial outline, and color. From a distance, the entire building, simple and unadorned, gives a sense of peace, friendliness, and subtlety.

The expansion harmonizes with the style of the original building, blending seamlessly with the surrounding architectural environment. The red brick walls, complemented by large protruding glass windows, meet the lighting requirements of the interior while interweaving old and new structures, bearing the marks of history. We extracted elements from the architectural style of local residences and old houses for reorganization and reprocessing, adopting a new roof structure to make the design of the gray-white eaves more delicate. On both sides of the gable, using the two original brick pillars as a base, we applied a stepped retreat method and various bricklaying techniques to artistically convey the unique charm of the red brick walls.

As a renovation project, the exhibition hall’s location was predetermined. The surrounding roads center on the exhibition hall, linking the entrance plaza with the internal spaces of the park and connecting the indoor and outdoor activity flows of the hall. This ensures that the interior and exterior spaces of the hall do not interfere with each other, allowing for a dynamic and harmonious layout.

The floor plan of the exhibition hall uses different forms of walls to enclose open display spaces and semi-open auxiliary spaces. The entrance porch adopts a transparent approach to facilitate a natural transition between indoor and outdoor spaces, enhancing the entry’s guidance. The original triangular trusses at the top of the interior roof were retained, and the original single-story warehouse was designed into upper and lower levels, with some areas left open, creating an ingeniously layered interior space. This layout effectively showcases Mr. He’s connections with the Olympics and his collections. The expanded southeast and north sections serve as reception and exhibition areas, highlighting the achievements of Wuxi’s Olympic personalities and the splendor of Olympic jade carvings. Sunlight streaming through the glass curtain walls creates varied light and shadow effects, while the indoor courtyard aligns with Jiangnan architectural layouts, beautifies the interior landscape, and ensures excellent sunlight, ventilation, and lighting.

The interior theme color is a harmonious contrast of gray, with colorful sculptures and installations accentuating the Olympic theme. For example, seating benches composed of colorful Olympic letters, and projections of past Olympic logos on the floor and walls. Each carefully designed detail ensures that Olympic elements are omnipresent, allowing every visitor to experience the Olympic spirit of “Faster, Higher, Stronger” and the aspiration for “Peace and Development.”