Arriving in the Huangyang district of Taizhou in eastern China, Wutopia Lab principal architect Yu Ting felt instantly refreshed. Though urban, the atmosphere here is enhanced by its position on a wide peaceful river, the presence of the surrounding mountains, and a significantly slower pace of life than Shanghai, where the firm is based. On location to begin design work for the new Duoyun Bookstore, Ting was inspired by the city’s tranquillity and pleasantness.

“Suddenly, I decided there should be a cloud, calmly and slowly rising over the river,” Ting says. “Clouds have a sophisticated and pure beauty.” Thus, a particularly unique bookstore was born, incorporating a series of indoor and outdoor spaces that take you on a meditative journey, clearing your mind to make way for all the written content you’re about to devour. If the layout looks familiar, that’s because it’s based on the traditional courtyard houses of China, in which the most important internal spaces are grouped pavilions looking out onto a central outdoor area.
Even as you approach from the street, the bookstore has an ethereal feel to it. The facade is a white perforated metal screen that almost blends into the sky, the entryway a cutout shaped like a cloud. Those perforations vary in size to create a layered effect that either reveals or disguises the rest of the city beyond the walls. Ting describes it as “a serene and pleasant visual subtractio...