The purpose of this museum is to educate people about the process of making silk. Silk is a valuable product loaded with history and cultural memory. Silk became an integral part of the Chinese economy and an important means of exchange for trading with its neighboring countries. The Taiwanese silkworm industry was declining due to higher overhead costs in production compared with other countries. By 1922, the government had abandoned the project and was bailing out silkworm farmers.
The museum itself is to mimic the shape of the creases of silk fabric, with the intention of creating large-scale, column-free spaces that allow visitors to experiment with the fluidity of the interior space. Located in Tucheng District, Taiwan, this project aims to have open spaces to provide visibility to and from the building. It is easily accessed by both public and private modes of transportations. The plaza in front of the museum acts as a gathering space for visitors to socialize.
There are six steps in the process of making silk, called the "sericulture". Sericulture involves raising healthy eggs through the chrysalis stage when the worm is encased in its silky cocoon. The chrysalis inside is destroyed before it can break out of the cocoon so that the precious silk filament remains intact. These steps are implemented as a sequence in the interior of this museum to give visitors specific experience when they are in the building. The six areas in this museum represent the six steps in the sericulture process.
