The Rural Memory Museum in Fengwu has become a symbol of the revitalization of culture and community in an area marked by population exodus, demographic aging, and lack of public facilities. It is part of the Fengwu JI rural-revitalization initiative, which seeks to reactivate life in the countryside through architectural interventions that respect history and local traditions.

The museum is located in the heart of town, on a plot where a building had given way to a square that, because of the region’s warm and rainy climate, was little used.

One main objective of this project was to turn this space into a meeting point for the townsfolk. Honoring the memory of the place, the new building went up on the exact spot of its predecessor, using local materials. The architectural intervention opted to try for a contemporary aesthetic that would blend with the rural fabric, generating a dialogue between past and present.

Elevated to the second floor, the museum leaves a semi-outdoor space at ground level that serves as a gathering area, safe from sun and rain. The building, shaped like a J, embraces a courtyard with other constructions. The spatial logic of traditional courtyards, which face inward, is inverted here by the elevated ground floor and the open design, forming stratified public zones facing out.

Inside, hidden skylights channel daylight, while aged wood evokes the passage of time. The museum’s rooms, which reconstruct the town’s history, awaken memories, but also strengthen the town’s sense of identity by transforming individual remembrances into a shared rural culture.