line+NEWS
Recently, Fanhao Meng, Co-founder and Chief Architect of line+, was invited to participate in A STRUCTURE OF FEELING: Young Architects and China’s Conjuncture at the Aedes Architecture Forum in Berlin, Germany. He attended the exhibition opening and forum and delivered a keynote lecture, sharing his recent practices and reflections with architects and scholars from across Europe.
Twenty-five years ago, Aedes presented the Chinese architecture exhibition TU MU, featuring architects including Shu Wang, Jiakun Liu, Yonghe Zhang, Nanjing University Architects (Lei Zhang, Wowo Ding, Junyang Wang, and Jingxiang Zhu), Qingyun Ma, Weiwei Ai, and others. The exhibition marked the first time that China’s independent architects were introduced to the international stage.
Twenty-five years later, A Structure of Feeling continues this historical trajectory, turning its attention to a new generation of Chinese architects whose practices have developed amid profound changes in social conditions, industrial structures, and construction contexts.
Curated by Changjun Gao, with Xiangning Li as Curatorial Advisor, the exhibition is on view at the Aedes Architecture Forum in Berlin from July 4 to October 14, 2026.
TU MU, 2001 © Aedes
Two representative projects by line+—Lishui Guyanhuaxiang Art Center and Mansion on Lotus Mountain—were selected for the exhibition. Beginning respectively with a public cultural space and a setting for everyday life, the two projects demonstrate distinct approaches to negotiating the relationships among nature, culture, daily life, and the public realm across different regional and typological contexts. In doing so, they contribute to the exhibition’s broader discussion of how a new generation of Chinese architects perceives contemporary realities and approaches the act of building.
line+ Projects on View: Lishui Guyanhuaxiang Art Center and Mansion on Lotus Mountain
At the opening ceremony, Hans-Jürgen Commerell, initiator of the exhibition and Director of Aedes, delivered the opening remarks. He was followed by Xiangning Li, Vice President of Tongji University and Academic Advisor to the exhibition, and curator Changjun Gao, who introduced the exhibition’s background, curatorial framework, and the broader context shaping the practices of a new generation of Chinese architects.
Hans-Jürgen Commerell, Director of Aedes
Xiangning Li / 李翔宁, Vice President of Tongji University
Changjun Gao (Kris) / 高长军, Curator
Opening Ceremony
In parallel, the Aedes Metropolitan Laboratory hosted an exhibition lecture and preview event.
Fanhao Meng delivered a keynote lecture titled From Land to Relationships. Taking six of his recent projects as a framework, he reflected on the evolving values of contemporary architecture through six dimensions: community, land, everyday life, humanistic care, memories of dwelling, and mechanisms of negotiation.
He argued that as the challenges facing architecture shift from new construction to the renewal of existing environments, and from rapid urbanization to changes in demographic and social structures, its focus is also moving from “land” toward “relationships.” Architecture must not only respond to the connection between people and land, but also reorganize relationships between people and communities, everyday life, and cultural memory, while exploring its social value in a new era.
The discussion was moderated by Jacopo Benedetti, Assistant Professor at Tongji University and Academic Editor of the exhibition. Participants included exhibition curator Changjun Gao; Berlin-based curator and urban planner Eduard Kögel; Binke Lenhardt, Co-founder and Partner of Crossboundaries; Erhard An-He Kinzelbach, Founder of KNOWSPACE; and Wilfried Wang, President of CICA and Professor at Tongji University.
Responding to the exhibition theme, the guests discussed the practical approaches of a new generation of Chinese architects confronting social, cultural, and spatial transformation, drawing on perspectives from curatorial practice, architectural design, urban research, and architectural education.
The exhibition title, A Structure of Feeling, draws on the concept of a “structure of feeling” proposed by British cultural theorist Raymond Williams. Against the backdrop of transformation within China’s architectural profession, the exhibition focuses on how a new generation of architects is exploring the renewal of existing urban spaces, rural development, and new forms of spatial production.
The exhibition is organized around three themes: Open Frames, Urban–Rural Currents, and Shifting Ground. Among the projects presented by line+, Lishui Guyanhuaxiang Art Center uses an open public cultural space to address questions of publicness at the intersection of art institutions, local life, and urban–rural flows. Mansion on Lotus Mountain, through the spatial organization of a place for living within a valley, responds to discussions surrounding the site, nature, and shifting spatial orders.
Lishui Guyanhuaxiang Art Center（滑动查看）
Mansion on Lotus Mountain（滑动查看）
At the exhibition, Fanhao Meng guided visitors through the two line+ projects. Using models, drawings, and visual materials, he introduced their site contexts, spatial organizations, design approaches, and the ideas behind them.
line+’s participation in the Aedes exhibition in Berlin follows its involvement in the thematic exhibition at the Arsenale and the China Pavilion of the Venice Architecture Biennale, its exhibition at the RIBA in London, and academic exchanges with international institutions including Harvard GSD, the University of Cambridge, the University of Sheffield, and the University of Minnesota. It marks another opportunity for line+ to contribute to global architectural discourse.
Through both design practice and theoretical research, line+ has long explored how architecture can respond to changing social realities and develop contextually grounded spatial expressions across different regional, cultural, and construction environments. Looking ahead, line+ will remain rooted in contemporary architectural practice in China, translating Chinese experience into methodologically meaningful design explorations while continuing to engage in dialogue within the global architectural context.
展览信息
A STRUCTURE OF FEELING：Young Architects and China's Conjuncture
水土：当代中国青年建筑师的实践切片
Duration｜July 4 – October 14, 2026
Venue｜Aedes Architecture Forum，Berlin
Curator｜Gao Changjun（高长军）
Curatorial Advisor｜Li Xiangning（李翔宁）
Participating Practices｜Atelier Alter Architects、Atelier XÜK、genarchitects、line+、DL Atelier、People's Architecture Office、Yanfei Architects、Studio QI、BUZZ
Official Exhibition Page｜https://aedesmetrolab.de/portfolio/a-structure-of-feeling/
Original News Link｜https://world-architects.com/en/architecture-news/insight/aedes-structure-feeling-china-exhibition
