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Architects: SuiPingYiLi Architecture Studio
- Area: 425 m²
- Year: 2022
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Photographs:natureimages- Jianbo Ke
Text description provided by the architects. Through this renovation, a building that is about to be demolished has been preserved. This building has been given a new life and has become the only place for the village to attract tourists. This is a practice trying to discuss the revitalization and reconstruction of the countryside. This project gave the villagers a new understanding of architecture: a place that can bring new life to the village. Yaoli Village Courier station is located in Yaoli Group, Longdou village, Shuibei County, Shaowu City, Fujian Province. This renovation project was designed and constructed simultaneously. It only takes 3 months from receiving the design task to the completion of the construction.
Addition of Minimum Intervention - This project used to be a one-storey building with a brick-concrete structure located at the entrance of the village. It was abandoned and was used for storage of sundries. Due to the lack of original data on the building, it was decided to build another structural system as a minimum intervention. This design aims at the minimum intervention of the original building and adds another structure to form a second floor. In this way, the seemingly two-storey building is actually composed of two independent structural systems. In order to ensure the safety of the structure, all the walls on the first floor are kept, and only the doors and windows are changed. As a new construction, the additional second floor is constructed with a light steel structure and light materials such as a wooden panel.
Site reading and context continuity - The premise of construction must be to read the site context and decide on the master plan of the building. The site is adjacent to the Highway, and the old building is basically parallel to the road. This design completed the landscape between the highway and the building. With all the surrounding trees retained, the area of the pond is increased, and a wooden platform is set up beside the pond to provide a place to rest and play. In this way, a relatively lively place is built to absorb the noise from the road. In contrast, on the back of the building, there are the countryside, rice fields, and mountains. This design chose to integrate as much as possible without any isolation and exclusion. This café will become an extension of the village.
Local material selection - This design wants to present an extremely light and even slightly "fragile" volume. It is not only conducive to the preservation of the original building but also learned from the archetype of a self-built roof canopy in a rural area of northern Fujian. The main characteristics of this type of canopy are light, long, and clear in construction logic. Villagers see it as the cheapest, most common, and easiest way for building renovation, expansion, and flexible use. This design transformed this light construction into the logic of the additional system. A long roof, with most of the structure hidden under it, creates thin but far-reaching overhanging eaves, making the entire building look like a large pergola, standing in the fields of the village entrance.
Dialogue with the village - Surrounded by fields, close to the village, and convenient to reach, the renovated small courier station has become the best place for surrounding citizens to experience the countryside. The design strengthens the horizontal trend of the building on the second floor. The building is entered by two stairs, which are friendly and present an open and interesting structure. At the same time, the long horizontal windows of the building and the deliberately stretched and lowered eaves keep the external sight of the building in a wide and flat shape, which makes the scenery of the village like a Chinese landscape painting, full of narrative and fluidity.
Dialogue with the road - Because it is adjacent to the highway, there is a constant flow of vehicles. There is a long row of seats along the road, realizing the collision of movement and stillness: "You are watching the traffic flow at the café, and the people in the traffic flow see you as a part of the view.". The architectural form guides people's behavior so that villagers or tourists can spontaneously create scenes of sitting with their legs hanging outside of the seats, which forms the interaction with the road. It is proof that Yaoli village café is a practical proposal for rural revitalization and reconstruction. Yaoli Village, which was originally lonely, has now become the first choice for many citizens for outings. After the renovation, the Yaoli courier station generated huge endogenous power. This unique attraction makes the place spirit of the station spontaneously emerge. This project is a gift from the countryside to Yaoli and, for a wider range, Nanping of Fujian province. It is also a warm and friendly window for more people to know and get into the countryside.
