A mountain in the clouds forested with books
A bookstore now stands on the site of an unfinished viewing platform. The bookshelves rise as majestically as the Hengduan Mountains overlooking them, with books densely packed like the trees. The boundaries between people and mountains, concrete and rock, and the man-made and natural are blurred, like clouds flowing down the canyon. The Nujiang Grand Canyon Bookstore faces the two sacred mountains of the Lisu and Bai ethnic groups across the river. In 2021, TAO was commissioned by Librerie Avant-Garde Bookstore to design three new stores in Nujiang Prefecture, the third being the Nujiang Grand Canyon Bookstore in Lushui City, which serves as the southern gateway to the Nujiang Gorge. While the beautiful scenery of mountains, valleys, and rivers made the location ideal for a viewing platform, a bookstore for local residents was built there instead.
Yangpo Village, where the bookstore is located, is an ancestral Lisu settlement on the Gaoligong ridge. The Lisu, one of the ethnic groups along the Nujiang River, settled here in the mid-16th century, adapting to the rugged terrain with innovations like crossbows—an inspiration for the building’s design. Perched on a steep slope, the structure embodies a dynamic “arrow on the bowstring.”
The roof, evoking the silhouettes of Mount Gaoligong and Mount Biluo, features two mountain-inspired triangles meeting over a rectangular base that forms the first and second floors. This three-story bookstore opens from the main entrance on the top floor, where a café invites guests to take in the mountain views. The bookstore itself occupies the second floor, surrounded on three sides by concrete walls and books, with a single window offering a sweeping view of the canyon.
Visitors may linger in the café or bookstore or wander around the public terrace outside. As you explore, openings in the sloping walls, resembling canyon crevices, frame unique views of the landscape, creating an experience of walking among the clouds with each step.
Between two symmetrical triangular masses lies a gorge. A staircase through the gap leads down to the first floor, where a cascade theater is nestled. Dimly lit by a small window, the theater maintains a protected, tranquil atmosphere. The theater’s door, opening and closing daily like a ritual serves as a boundary between the contrasting landscapes. Inside, guests read, reflect, and connect with the past, while beyond the door, the Nujiang River rages against the serene interior. The camphor-wood door, like a curtain on a stage, unveils both the theater and the Nujiang Canyon in sequence.
From the public bookstore to the solemn canyon, this space offers a continuous experience where the architectural elements from the roof to the windows to the doors, blur the boundaries between civilization and nature. By embracing both realms rather than dividing them, the Nujiang Grand Canyon Bookstore brings a spark of culture to this remote settlement, surrounded by awe-inspiring mountains.
Project: Nujiang Grand Canyon Bookstore of Librairie Avant-Garde / Location: Lushui, Nujiang, Yunnan, China / Architect: TAO (Trace Architecture Office) / Project team: HUA Li, ZHANG Peng, LIU Zhaorui, ZHANG Yuheng, TAM Yue, ZHOU Chenyue, SUN Wenhao, WANG Jiahao / Structural engineer: MA Zhigang, ZHAO Xiaolei / Client: Librairie Avant-Garde, Lushui Culture and Tourism Bureau / Gross floor area: 637m² / Design: 2022.1.~2022.12. / Construction: 2023.2.~2024.9. / Photograph: Courtesy of the architect; ©AOGVISION (courtesy of the architect)
