Bao’an 1990

Bao’an 1990 involves renovating and expanding the original Bao’an Library, Culture Center and Theater in Shenzhen City, China. The design focus on the concept of “new sprouts on an old tree”. It emphasizes the importance of preserving original architectural form, while improving the urban interface, traffic flowline and physical space quality, creating a new spacial order of culture complex.

The practise firstly expands a newly-built basement under the central square, so as to smooth out the height difference of original site. The basement boundary is kept at a safe distance of about 4m from the existing buildings, while its vertical traffic box and pipelines rising above the ground, connecting to the sides of culture complex by corridor bridges. The functional extension includes metro system at the far end, central public hall, catering, retail, parking etc. The comfort and accessibility of the entire spaces are significantly improved. In terms of building renovation, architects adopt unified design language and method, that transparent volumes are embedded in the old building, and the height difference between inside and out is minimized. The ground floor of new library (original lower ground floor) is exposed as main entrance, forming a full-height "Diamond Atrium". With upgraded functions, the library continues to provide the 130,000 residents of Bao’an Old Town with essential and convenient services, including book lending, newspaper and periodical reading, e-reading, youth reading programs, and various reader activities. The cultural center renovation weaves a glass curtain wall to cover rearranged steps, achieving an open and bright “Staircase Gallery”. To meet the two different needs of seating and passing, the entire steps was dismantled and reconstructed. New layout is carefully redesigned to balance the functions of cultural activities and the flow of people through the space. The theatre extension primarily attempts to create a gray space and a “Crystal Hall” with transportation and distribution functions. The Crystal Hall features a blend of steel structure and ultra-white glass, creating a spacious and bright environment. The second-floor platform inside adopts a suspended structure. The floor slab, measuring 50.4m long and 7.6m wide, is suspended from 20 steel columns using equal-strength round steel rods. The edges of the floor slab are clad in copper-plated stainless steel in the form of beveled cuts. The Concert Hall ceiling is painted dark black, while the walls are adorned with wood veneer featuring intricate concave and convex textures tailored to meet acoustic standards, thus fostering a serene and subtly enigmatic ambiance. The wall in lobby adopts a curved design that complements the shape of the concert hall balconies, establishing a visual connection between the wall and ceiling. A spatial progression unfolds across the Crystal Hall, corridor, lobby, and main concert hall. Each offers a distinct spatial experience, from openness to semi-openness, then culminating in the more introspective atmosphere of the main concert hall. This spatial arrangement guides the audience through a journey of spiritual purification and tranquility, allowing them to fully immerse themselves in the purity of music.