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Architects: FLIP studio
- Area: 230 m²
- Year: 2023
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Photographs:Fangfang Tian
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Lead Architect: Kailun Sun
Text description provided by the architects. The Bird Water Tower is located in the northwest corner of M50 Creative Park in Shanghai, backed by Heatherwick's 1000 Trees Phase II. The water tower has an industrial history of half a century, once the studio of artist and curator Bing Su, but was later abandoned for several years. The renovation of the water tower aims to reconstruct a series of spatial experiences in the ruins that can allow people to shuttle between the old and new time and place, and immerse themselves in contemporary art.
The renovation is a process of re-understanding and excavation, as well as a creative process of reconstruction. Starting from the outdoor space, a series of platforms, bridges, and stairs were inserted in appropriate positions to form a circulation to the water tower. At the same time, details such as the black rusted steel handrails and balustrades, produced a strong sense of enclosure, effectively establishing a sign of "the new", separated from the old building, when visitors shuttle between the old and new, indoor and outdoor.
There are two indoor spaces under the water tower: one is square, and the other is rectangular, separated by a narrow outdoor terrace. After renovation, the square space will be used as a cafe open to the public, and the rectangle space will be a multi-functional hall that can be freely switched into reception, exhibition, or collectors' dining. The design treated the two spaces in a completely different manner: in the square hall, the wet gypsum wall was removed to expose the rough dark gray cement bare wall, while retaining the traces left after the demolition of the interior partition. Then the coffee bar made of black painted OSB and brushed stainless steel was inserted, together to form a "black box" at the entrance.
The old walls recalling the old industrial era, lit by pink neon lights, reveal a dim and ambiguous atmosphere. On the other hand, in the rectangular hall, a two-thirds wall-high white box was inserted, exposing only the original texture of the ceiling and facing the 1000 Trees Phase II. In "the white box", the juxtaposition of the new and the old is amplified, especially in the details of the new doorway, where the white box is nested in the old wall: the white new wall, the cut brick wall, and the old terrazzo cladding are directly exposed to the viewer in a way similar to Gordon Clark's "architectural anatomy".
In the process of spatial reconstruction, the curating of art is another important clue. The introduction of art is usually placed at the key turning point of the circulation space, including various media art forms, such as graffiti, installation, painting, and video, so that visitors can be guided by art, and gradually access the water tower.
Along the staircase, there was a mottled yellow cement wall with color-washed terrazzo texture left by the industrial era. The design specially reserved this old wall untouched which led to the dramatic live graffiti performance by French graffiti artist Dezio before the opening of the water tower. Upon reaching the roof terrace, a floating polished metal plate was inserted at the bottom of the water tower so that in the future, digital media artworks can be projected on it according to the exhibitions and events. When the night falls, the water tower, illuminated by vibrant neon lights and dynamic projections, looks like a lighthouse from another time and space, becoming a unique landmark in the quiet M50 park.
