In Yan'an, a famous historic city, it is indeed challenging to design the most important building complex for the new campus of a university with profound heritage. We have to ponder on how to include the past and turn to the future, incorporate regional features and reflect the spirit of the times.
Our design fully taps the cultural features of Yan'an and the humanistic intention of the university, and makes culture, building and landscape of the campus echo with the Loess Plateau features in Yan'an, presenting a warm and unadorned campus with strong cultural presence. By such design, we distinguish the campus from the remaining stereotyped new campuses in current Chinese universities.
Following the student-centered idea, we design public squares, courtyards, corridors and platforms as the public space to serve teachers and students. So we make the space more accessible to facilitate communication.
After an in-depth study of local architecture, we interpret set-back, cave, cross-shaped brick hole and loess color, the most representative elements, with contemporary language. We also improve local building materials and techniques with modern means and employ local craftsmen to exhibit the primitive aesthetics of local building.
The new campus design would jump out from the design paradigm of its kind to explore a campus with regional characteristics, cultural atmosphere and spirit of the times, which specifically is to tally with the unique historical, cultural and regional context of Yan'an University, accommodate future development of the university, promote exchanges between teachers and students, and spark innovation.
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