Chaozhou, China
/Tide brings home nostalgia
No matter how far one trvaels, this will always be home/
In Chaozhou, banyan trees with ush branches and leaves can be found in almost every village, providing shelter for the local villagers away from wind and rain and a natural gathering spot for neighbors, a playground for children, and an indelible nostalgia in a localer’s heart.
Many people picture their hometown associated with white walls and gray bricks, busy villagers, and elderly people in front of their home alone, the same as to Mr. Wu Qingliang, the founder of Nippon Paint who donated money to build The Songchang Kindergarten in 1980s upon his return to China. With regards to the safety of the building and stability of a school, the kindergarten has been disused for a long time. Hence, Mr. Wu and his family entrusted “Dream Home” to transform the abandoned kindergarten into a public center which serves the entire village residents.
/Extend the shade under the banyan tree
Provide shelters for the villagers every day and night/
The design concept for Living Room of Dawu Village draws from shades of banyan trees.
The original site was a quadrangle courtyard with a two-story teaching building, a one-story building with auxiliary rooms for teachers on one side. The entire school building is placed under a tall banyan tree of 300 hundred year old. “After witnessing this banyan tree, we had an inspiration that people in the village liked to gather under the tree for various activities such as chatting, eating, drinking tea, and enjoying natural breeze. This tree has become the soul of social interaction for the village. Therefore, the core ideal of renovation is to open up the entire courtyard, simulating a huge shade of trees “, said by Gu Yi, when he recalled his direct inspiration of the design a year ago.
The space starts from the 300 year old banyan tree and extends outwards by dismantling a few walls and regenerate in advanced steel and wood structures to build a borderless communal center. Adhering to this design philosophy, the architect reorganized the original two-story teaching building by demolishing the public toilets near the river and the auxiliary rooms into corridors. An interesting curve extends from the platform on the first floor to connect with the second floor, creating a three-dimensional space resembling a bleacher, forming performing experience of people sitting under the banyan tree.
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