Atelier FCJZ and Coldefy & Associates Architects Urban Planners (CAAU) were announced last month as the winners of the Fondation de Chine Competition that will add another residential facility to the historic Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris (CIUP). The project is part of #Cite2020, an initiative by the Cite Internationale to develop 1,800 new housing units by 2020. Adding to the existing 40 residential buildings, the Fondation de Chine will introduce a contemporary interpretation of student housing to the campus.
"When you find a piece of stone which is three or four hundreds years old, then you understand the notion of time as more than what we can experience as human beings. At that moment the old thing might be beautiful, it might be ugly. It doesn't matter, but it gives you a sense of profound time, and then you understand your history and ancestors that lived in a different world, different from the one we are in now."-Yung Ho Chang
Located in Beijing’s Yuanming Yuan Park, next to the ruins of the mixed-style Baroque Palace, Yung Ho Chang's office is in an ancient wooden dwelling, surrounded by vegetable gardens grown by the architects of the studio.
In this conversation, Yung Ho, who established China’s first independent architectural office, Atelier FCJZ in 1993, laying the foundation of contemporary practice in China, talks about his story, describing a Beijing which has disappeared as well as the contemporary Beijing and its "New Beijing Sky." He talks about architecture using references from movies, literature, art and artists, describing his approach to architecture in accordance with his philosophy of life.
The Bamboo Lantern designed for the Gwamgju Design Biennale in Korea by Atelier FCJZ(a prominent chinese firm who is also designing the Shanghai Corporate pavilion for the Expo 2010) appears to be a solid heavy mass. Yet, as visitors separate its two halves and occupy its interior, the mere cubic form turns into something else completely. The lantern is a “ dialogue between opposites” , as its plan is comprised of a circle nested within a square. The circle and square illustrate strong symbolism from the Ancient Chinese tradition, with the former representing the heavens, and the later, the earth. These two shapes are inherently different and yet, when combined, they work together to organize the exterior space and provide a new sense for the interior. “The directionality in the square is used to organize the surrounding exterior viewing space while the stillness of the circular shape that defines the interior intimately collects the rest space,” explained the architects.
.jpg?1499812005 "Pavilion Suisse by Le Corbusier. Image Courtesy of Atelier FCJZ")
