King Boat Museo Cultural by Pingtung County Government and C.M.Chao

King Boat Museo Cultural by Pingtung County Government and C.M.Chao is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 A' Design Award de Ouro in Deseño de Arquitectura, Edificación e Estruturas Competition Category.

OuroArquitectura· 2026

King Boat Museo Cultural

by Pingtung County Government and C.M.Chao

Client: C.M.Chao. Architect & Planners

A' Design Award de Ouro Winner in Arquitectura Category

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Verified Award Winner
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View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

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The Design

About King Boat Museo Cultural

King Boat é un museo cultural dedicado á Cerimonia do Barco do Rei, situado en Donggang, Taiwán. O edificio de cinco plantas ten unha fachada branca situada sobre unha base ondulada que evoca o mar. A fachada está revestida de formigón reforzado con fibra de vidro, escollido pola súa textura e pola súa resistencia ao sal e á humidade. Liñas pregadas e entradas encaixadas conducen a un atrio central revestido con malla de aluminio expandido, que filtra a luz e o son. Unha réplica a tamaño real do Barco do Rei exhíbese baixo luz natural, e unha terraza na azotea ofrece vistas do porto.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award de Ouro

King Boat Museo Cultural gañou o A' Design Award de Ouro, un recoñecemento inmensamente prestixioso outorgado a deseños de primeira clase, marabillosos e sobresaíntes. Os gañadores Ouro son creacións sumamente innovadoras, visionarias e glamurosamente deslumbrantes que reflicten o xenio, a sabedoría e a destreza dos seus deseñadores. Espérase que King Boat Museo Cultural sexa unha invención moi eloxiada, pioneira e monumental que ofrece un valor sen precedentes. Este deseño gañador do A' Design Award de Ouro é un proxecto espectacular e respectado que beneficia moito a arte, a ciencia, o deseño e a tecnoloxía e fai avanzar os seus límites. King Boat Museo Cultural crea intensos sentimentos de desexo, esperta a paixón, anima a creatividade e fascina.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: The building's form is inspired by a traditional king boat, with a five-story white facade atop a wave-like base symbolizing the sea. Folded lines and recessed entries mimic ocean swells, leading to a central atrium with aluminum mesh panels that ripple like waves. Inside, a 1:1 King Boat replica is displayed, bathed in natural light. The rooftop observatory offers views of Donggang Harbor. The museum's five exhibitions invite visitors to explore marine beliefs, parades, and boatbuilding rituals, celebrating Taiwanese folk religion.
Dimensions & Packaging: The five-story structure includes four levels of exhibition space arranged to follow the ceremonial procession of the King Boat Ceremony, with five permanent thematic galleries: Marine Beliefs, Divine Patrol, Regional Ceremonies, Sacred Boat Building, and The Donggang Festival. The third floor houses the museum's centerpiece 42-foot-long, 12-foot-wide King Boat replica, viewable from a 360-degree elevated viewing platform. The roof features a skylight and observation deck, reinforcing the building's vertical movement and layered storytelling.
Tags: King Boat Culture, Donggang, Cultural Museum, Local Revitalization, King Boat Ceremony, Taiwanese Folk Ritual
Production Technology: The facade is clad in glass fiber reinforced concrete, chosen for its textured finish, durability, and resistance to salinity and humidity, ideal for a coastal climate. Its surface reflects sunlight like shimmering waves, resonating with the harbor context. The atrium is enveloped by expanded aluminum mesh, offering both acoustic and light-filtering functions. A predominantly white color palette, paired with natural materials and glass windows, allows natural light to interact with surfaces, emphasizing the building's temporal and spiritual dimensions.
Design Challenge: The biggest challenge was translating a deeply religious, ritual-based, and localized practice into an architectural language that modern audiences could understand and feel. The architect engaged in continuous dialogue with local elders and cultural scholars, extracting symbolic elements, such as the dragon's eye, wave lines, and procession routes, and converting them into spatial form and lighting gestures. The building had to be more than a container for culture; it had to be a bridge for cultural exchange, making that transformation the core design mission.
Research: The Pingtung King Boat Museum, Taiwan's first dedicated to the King Boat Ceremony, reinterprets maritime beliefs as a 'living museum.' Its exterior mimics a king's boat riding waves, with flowing walls and dragon-eye openings that tell spiritual stories day and night. The centerpiece is a 1:1 King Boat replica suspended in the atrium, bathed in natural light. The design blends light, materials, and acoustics with sustainable features like natural ventilation. It’s a cultural, educational, and tourism hub, honoring tradition while inspiring future heritage.
Inspiration: The design begins with the traditional maritime faiths of Asia. Located in Donggang, the Pingtung King Boat Museum is Taiwan's first cultural center for the King Boat Ceremony. Inspired by the triennial ritual, the architecture transforms spiritual and oceanic imagery into a vessel of history and faith, linking local identity with future vision. Embracing the idea that 'life is culture, and culture is life,' the museum serves as a living space that bridges religion and daily life, sparking cultural renewal and community vitality.
Project Duration: The project finished in December 2024 in Taiwan.
Operation Flow: By transforming traditional culture into a modern space, the museum becomes a hub for education, community, and tourism. It welcomed over 200,000 visitors in its first month, becoming a Donggang landmark. Beyond exhibits, it preserves oral history, teaches traditional crafts, and trains festival guides, making culture tangible and engaging. More than design, it's a cultural movement, sparking heritage continuity and innovation rooted in place and tradition.
Team Members: Pingtung County Government, C.M.Chao. Architect & Planners
Image Credits: C.M.Chao. Architect & Planners