In the Hepingmen district of Beijing – a neighbourhood characterized by traditional two-storey dwellings, and known as a hub for the sale of crafts and antiques – Arch Studio has converted the interior of a grey brick house into a striking expression of minimalism for the Rongbaozhai Western Art Gallery. The local architecture firm (which previously installed a tea house inside a Qing Dynasty hutong using a series of curving glass walls) turned to the classic form of folding screens to bring maximum flexibility to a finite space while keeping the look as spartan as possible.

The basement of the 400-square-metre house, almost entirely subdivided by concrete structural walls, presented an organizational challenge that was solved using a series of folding screens – white, like the walls. Blond wood lattices at the top and bottom allow light and air to circulate, and add a touch of warmth to the otherwise blank space. A ceiling of fabric panels helps to further warm and brighten the space, and mitigate the sense of confinement created by the concrete ceiling.

On the ground floor – an open-concept space dotted with pillars, but free from structural walls – the challenge was not to make the gallery feel more open, but to create structure. Here, folding screens can be rolled out to enclose a long, narrow exhibition corridor that runs the length of the room. A wall of narrow wood slats at the end closest to the street is visible through the glass entrance, offering a glimpse of what’s inside.

Everything folds up against the walls when not in use. And while much of the ground floor space features the same white walls and screens with lattice detailing as the basement, one major difference sets it apart: a long wall lined from floor to ceiling with a grid of wood drawers, adorned with brass pulls and punctuated here and there by glass-fronted display cases. Very little else decorates the space; unobtrusive track lighting offers the flexibility to adapt the illumination scheme to different configurations, and only a cluster of globe pendants in one corner serves as a focal point.

Even circulation elements adhere to the philosophy that openness, light and simplicity come first: the floating staircase leading up from the ground floor is a skeletal line of white treads behind a wall of transparent glass.