There are common professional trajectories that plucky young architecture studios tend to follow, depending on where they are. In the United States, they might start with single-family houses or retail interiors—but, in China nowadays, the countryside is where budding designers often show their chops before taking on wider-ranging projects.

Sun Shed (1 and top of page)
MIX Architecture transformed a former agricultural warehouse, capped with a glass roof, into a dynamic event hall—complete with “treelike” bamboo columns, which veil the original steel structure. Inside, a visual connection to the sky and planted areas evoke a pastoral landscape. Photo © Cong Lin, click to enlarge.