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Architects: Wall Architects of XAUAT
- Area: 300 m²
- Year: 2021
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Photographs:Rui Wu, Maozhen Wang, Yijia Liu, Chen Wang, Shaochong Li
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Lead Architects: Rui Wu, Maozhen Wang, Shaochong Li
Origin. Xi'an Gaoxin No.6 High School is located in the east of Huyi District about 8 kilometers, which is a rural ordinary high school with a quiet environment. This school was founded in 1956, then put under the unified management of Gaoxin Educational Bureau in 2018, which is a boarding school with 32 classes and 1,500 students.In 2020, Samsung donated money to Shaanxi Provincial Youth Development Foundation to help build the first campus library of Shaanxi Hope Project in this school. Meanwhile, Shaanxi Provincial Library donated 15,000 high-quality books and set up a free digital resource service station.
Shape the place. The school carefully selected a garden on the west side of the campus square for this project, hoping to create a library in harmony with the surrounding environment. Firstly, the building is compressed into a rectangular volume that is close to the square, which defines a pleasant garden with a stand on the west side. Secondly, the volume and the teaching buildings on the north and south sides of the east square together enclose a stable square and give the collective activities of "positive" characteristic.
So, the "Big sloping roof" creates two sides of the form, which slowly descends to the west to create a 2.4m high "small scale"space under the eaves, we call it a "sittable facade".The west space of 4.2-meter depth under the eaves forms a "semi-outdoor reading space" facing the garden, which can be used by teachers and students at any time.
Open and quiet. The structural layer of the "big roof" and space below show two different atmospheres of openness and quiet: On the first floor, a transparent glass interface is adopted to maximize the interaction with the environment, in addition to the frame columns and low bookcases (0.75m high) that enclose the space; The second floor creates a quiet reading experience with the help of "big roof", and the partially exposed structural beams create the tension of the space.
Epilogue. This low-cost campus library was built and put into use in just two months with the efforts of all parties, and it was loved by the teachers and students. Our greatest wish is to build more libraries to help rural children enjoy better public resources.....
