Context

The 4,400-square-meter project is located within an urban park (the Ecological Garden) in a dense residential and industrial area of Minhang, Shanghai. It consists of the Park Administration and two reception facilities. Named as “Village of Reeds” and “Secluded Place”, the two facilities meet local communities’ growing need to have landscaped settings for small-group conferences and retreats. People enter the three parts from separated entries along the west side of the building complex.

Design Concepts

1. The Courtyard Tradition With the current dominance of Western culture in China, the standard solution for such a project would be three freestanding buildings surrounded by lawns. We rejected this model, suggested to us by the owner, because the exposed outdoor spaces would be useless near a park in a high-density city. Inspired by the courtyard tradition, we decentralized the building mass and internalized outdoor space as courtyards. Walls separate the Center from the park and the three parts from each other. This allows users to have privacy while enjoying nature, a popular way to relax in Chinese culture.

2. The Visual Channels -- A Critique of the Tradition To avoid the complete isolation associated with traditional courtyards, we created a variety of openings on the walls to form visual channels. They allow users to have glimpses of the other courtyards and the park beyond, expanding their sense of space and linking them to the public life outside. The main channel, a north-south canal, penetrates all three parts of the Center. Additional channels of east-west direction are provided through slits on the walls. The front of the Park Administration facing the street has a double-layered façade, completing the hidden-and-reveal boundary.

3. Pairs of Indoor and Outdoor Spaces Each major room in the design is paired with an outdoor space to jointly serve one function. Much loved by the Chinese, the pattern contrasts with the Western model that tends to group indoor and outdoor spaces into two separated categories. To improve on the tradition, second-floor rooms also have their roof-top patios. The numerous outdoor spaces are given different shapes and ambiances to highlight their various functions.

4. Local Landscape Patterns The design of the gardens in this project borrows patterns from local rural landscape, such as the reed-bordered waterways and the fishponds, but in an abstracted way to create a symbolized nature. The reeds now have grown to 1.5 meter high as intended, which also serve as a screen "wall" between the conference hall and the more private area in "Village of Reeds."

5. Low-Tech Construction and Material Due to the limited budget and local labor's skill, the design selects a hybrid structural system in which masonry bearing wall and site-cast concrete framing (slender than one used alone) work together. Frequently used among low-end, low-rise construction in China, the system has a good thermal value, can resist earthquakes up to intensity VII, while still allows for some large openings in the spatial configuration. It especially suits this scheme that calls for many space barriers. In addition, this design revives a few ancient techniques such as the brick lattice wall.

Project Data

Location

Dongchuan Road (at Kunyang Road), Minhang Economic & Technological Development Zone, Shanghai

Project Period 2002-2004

Floor Area 4,400 square meters

Client Shanghai Minhang United Development Co., Ltd.

Designer

Architecture: Pu Miao (Design Architect), Shanghai Landscape Architecture Design Institute (Architect of Record)

Structure: Xu Man (Shanghai Landscape Architecture Design Institute, same below)

Plumbing: Chen Huijun

Electrical Engineering: Zhou Leyan

Park Planning: Zhou Zaichun

Photographer Pu Miao

Publication/Award

Journals A+ (Belgium, Vol. 211, 2007), Detail (Germany, Chinese Edition, 1/2006), Dialogue (Taiwan, Vol. 122, 2008), Architectural Journal (China, 5/2005), Time+Architecture (China, 5/2004), Architecture Asia (Asia, 3/2009), and book Domus+78 Chinese Architects and Designers (2006)

Design Merit Award, The 6th Far Eastern Architectural Awards, Taiwan, 2007

Short-listed, Cityscape Architectural Review Awards, 2006

Exhibited at the 2005 First Shenzhen Biennial of Urbanism\Architecture, Shenzhen, China, 2005-2006

基地与任务

闵行是上海近郊一个稠密的居住与工业区。本工程建筑面积4，400平方米, 位于该区内一个城市公园“生态园”中。本中心由公园管理楼及两个接待设施（“苇庄”及“幽僻处”）组成。主要是为满足当地社区希望有带绿化的环境供小型团体开会休闲的需求。三部分各自有独立入口，设在建筑群西面。

设计概念

1. 庭院传统 在当前占主导地位的西方文化影响下，业主原要求我们将本工程做成三个独立的小别墅,周围环以草地。我们认为本基地位于高密度城市的公园之中，这种做法将使该设施的室外空间因过分暴露而无法使用。为此我们借鉴了我国的传统庭院空间，将建筑分成小体块，将室外空间做成内庭院。院墙在本设施与公园之间，以及本设施中的三个部分之间造成分隔，保证了人们能享受一种为中国人喜爱的休闲方式--在私密的环境中悠然观赏自然。

2. 视觉通道--对传统的批判 传统庭院的问题是过分闭锁内向，我们为此在院墙上开启了各种洞口以形成视觉通道。使用者能经常一瞥其他庭院以及外面的公园，从而扩大了空间感以及与城市公共生活的联系。一条南北向小河贯穿本设施的三个部分，成为主要视觉通道。另外还在院墙上做了窄长豁口，以通过多条东西向次要视觉通道。公园管理楼面向城市道路的一面做成双层外墙，是这一半隔半通系统中的一个组成部分。

3. 室内外空间配对 西方建筑传统中多将室内外空间分别处理成两个大块,与上述模式不同,中国人喜爱将每个主要房间都与一个室外空间配成对来服务于一个功能。本设计不仅采纳了这一模式, 而且在现代建筑中发展了它，如为二层的空间也设计了屋顶花园。根据各自不同的功能，在各种配对关系中的每个室外空间同时被赋予不同的形状与气氛。

4. 水乡风景特征 本工程中的园林设计借鉴了当地农村的水乡风景典型，像芦荡或鱼塘。但这种借鉴是用简约的几何形体来象征性地进行的。芦苇现在已长到预期的1.5米高度,它们同时成为一道"墙",为"苇庄"中的会议厅与其他更私密的区域之间提供了一定的分隔.

5. 本地技术与材料 本工程的预算及当地工人的技术水平均有限，为此我们采用了由部分砌体承重墙及部分混凝土框架（比单用框架时的截面要小）组成的混合结构体系。该体系的热工性能好，能抗震七级，同时还允许一定的开洞，被广泛用于中国的经济型低层房屋中。由于本设计要求许多空间隔断，它特别适用于本工程。另外，我们还在本工程中复活了一些像砖花格墙那样价廉物美，但在近年来被打入冷宫的传统建造技术。

工程资料

地点 上海闵行经济技术开发区东川路(昆阳路口)

时间 2002-2004

建筑面积 4,400 平方米

业主 上海闵行联合发展有限公司

设计

建筑: 缪朴(上海市园林设计院顾问)

结构: 许蔓(上海市园林设计院,下同)

给排水: 陈惠君

电气: 周乐燕

公园规划: 周在春

摄影 缪朴

发表/获奖

期刊《A+》(比利时, 211卷, 2007), 《Detail》(德国, 中文版, 1/2006), 《建筑》(台湾, 122卷, 2008), 《建筑学报》(5/2005), 《时代建筑》(5/2004), 《Architecture Asia》(亚洲, 3/2009), 及图书 《Domus+78中国建筑师/设计师》(2006)

第六届远东建筑设计奖(台湾), 佳作奖, 2007

Cityscape Architectural Review 建筑奖，入围，2006

第一届深圳城市\建筑双年展, 2005