Archinect has received images from a recent installation completed by Sordo Madaleno Arquitectos and WUA Studio for the 'Art at Qiaoshan - Art Field Nanhai' in China’s Guangdong Province. One of 73 installations tied to an aquatic theme (to 'be like water'), their proposal 'Floating Boats' captures the spirit of dragon boat racers while recreating a multi-layered industrial space in ways that combine "history, symbolism, and emotion."

The installation is 'translated' across three levels meant to represent the tripartite lifecycle of the boats, which are purposely stored and maintained underwater. The first enclosed ground-level space places users in that stasis before progressing to the next 'floating' first level and then on to the final culminating view of the racers themselves on the second level above.

"The pre-existence and memory of an object or place holds the accumulated wisdom of generations," Sordo Madaleno's partner Fernando Sordo Madaleno explains of this concept. "Understanding the reasons that gave rise to these boats and this space was essential to respect and reinterpret their history, especially under the central theme of water."

WUA Studio was launched by the former Sordo Madaleno team member Shawn Shaobo Wu in London this fall with a focus on "innovative architectural typologies that emphasize social value." Sordo Madaleno, which also operates a studio practice in London, was originally founded in 1937 in Mexico City.