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The CPI, as a "natural wild garden-style" standalone commercial cluster community, interconnects scattered individual commercial units through the aggregation of "public spaces" such as parks, squares, open spaces, sidewalks, waterfronts, and streets. By providing these public spaces, we believe that CPI W-18b, the commercial unit of CPI, should also bear some public responsibilities. Guests who are tired from walking should not only be able to sit on benches by the roadside but should also be able to rest in front of each shop. If each unit pursues maximizing business area or rigidly guards its boundaries, the community will be composed of disconnected, unrelated, or even conflicting fragments.
We opened the building on all sides to create new usage scenarios and support public activities. North Side: Facing the inner lake, the ring walkway is quite busy. We elevated the interface, creating a height difference. This allows indoor and outdoor areas to remain independent yet visually connected. East Side: At the island's end, we created a quiet, nature-engaging space using stairs, a second-floor cantilevered area, and a few peach trees. South Side: Facing the lake, a cement platform was built for future kayak brands to wash boats. Guests and staff can have private conversations by bringing out chairs. West Side: We created a mesh canopy around trees, filtering out debris to form a transitional space. A bar supports outdoor activities like coffee, alcohol, and music.
The design features actively open public spaces, lightweight materials, and a focus on spatial form, with an emphasis on sustainability. Therefore, we are exploring the relationship between commercial and public spaces (public nature) and sustainability issues from three aspects: public nature, lightweight structural materials and heavy spatial forms, and sustainability. By integrating with the surroundings, it establishes diverse public activity spaces. Using lightweight industrial and wood materials achieves low-cost, rapid construction while providing a lightweight structural prototype and a warm community atmosphere. The building's facade incorporates a mesh design, interacting with seasonal changes and the local climate, creating a space that harmonizes with the natural environment.
1) Public Space:
Commercial units should also shoulder public responsibilities. Thus, the architecture actively opens up to the surroundings, connecting with the external environment on all sides to create new usage scenarios, supporting and engaging in public activities.
2) Space Strategy:
The strategy of using lightweight structural materials and emphasizing spatial forms has been adopted. The use of 100*100-sized steel structural frames, along with industrial products like sun panels and pressed steel sheets, facilitates cost-effective and rapid construction while aligning with green energy principles. Additionally, incorporating wooden materials into certain structural elements within the lightweight industrial framework fosters a communal atmosphere.
3) Sustainability:
The urban environments often feel disconnected and induce anxiety due to the discrepancy between information overload and tangible experiences. We design architecture that embraces the present moment and adapts to change. The building facade features a mesh design. Leaves caught in it become integral to the structure, evolving with the seasons from green to yellow, sparse to dense, embodying a perpetual state of flux. Leveraging Chengdu's climate, we blur the boundaries between man-made and natural, utilizing tree canopies to create shaded spaces and integrating outdoor paving materials indoors. The multi-layered facade promotes energy efficiency with permeable outer mesh and insulated glass sliding doors.
The owner has posed questions on how design can better facilitate sustainable development in commercial settings and how small commercial buildings can respond to the demands for public spaces. We also hope to use this opportunity to delve into the relationship between commercial and public spaces (publicness) and discuss issues of sustainability.
YIIIE is a Chengdu based studio for architecture, public space, community renewal and lifestyle. We're looking for a balance between business and society to make the city a lot more fun.
