Gold Architecture, Building and Structure Design · 2022
International Islands Multifunctional Area
- A' Design Award 2022 Gold Winner in Architecture, Building and Structure Design
- Awarded April 15, 2022
- CLIENT: Gad
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 28,889
- Verification code ADAD37BDF6 · Verify this award
About International Islands Multifunctional Area
International Islands is a conference center located in Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province, China. The Maritime Silk Road is the main theme of the design. The building form derives from Tang and Song traditions and adopts the classic ratio and pattern of the roof and wall of the Tang Dynasty. Slightly inclined walls follow the traditional method of thick lower pillars and thin upper pillars. White stone at the base contrasts with the natural-color cornice. The spanning form links the mountains with the sea, and an open landscape corridor brings greenery to the city.
Working within traditions of contemplative pavilion architecture that trace lineages through modernist masters and ancient shelter typologies alike, this award-winning multifunctional area by gad achieves a remarkable synthesis of material warmth, spatial grandeur, and phenomenological sensitivity that invites prolonged engagement and quiet reflection. The design demonstrates exceptional command of architectural framing, employing the heavy timber-clad ceiling as a carefully calibrated device that simultaneously provides protective enclosure while directing vision inexorably toward the marine horizon visible through the precisely proportioned central aperture. Technical accomplishment manifests in the rhythmic precision of the timber batten system, whose parallel lines create visual music across the ceiling plane while establishing a warm material presence that tempers the potentially austere monumentality of the colonnade below. The integration of the reflective water feature proves particularly sophisticated, transforming the floor plane into an active compositional participant that doubles perceived space, amplifies available light, and introduces an element of contemplative stillness that resonates with the distant calm of the sea beyond. Thematic content engages enduring architectural preoccupations: the dialogue between shelter and exposure, the transition from interior sanctuary to exterior vastness, and the human desire to frame and contemplate natural infinity from positions of cultivated comfort. The specimen trees positioned at the threshold, supported by traditional staking, introduce organic counterpoint to architectural geometry while suggesting cultivation, stewardship, and the careful integration of natural elements within designed landscapes. One might consider how this space functions as a contemporary interpretation of the classical stoa or the viewing pavilion traditions found across cultures, spaces designed not merely for passage but for pause, contemplation, and the elevated experience of horizon gazing that has occupied human imagination across millennia.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- For design, Maritime Silk Road is shown as the main clue from beginning to end. The spanning building form ties up the mountains with the sea in the west and in the east, The open landscape corridor is created for greening the city. The building form which derives from Tang and Song traditions adopts the classic ratio and pattern of the roof and wall in the Tang Dynasty which is solid and stable. The white stone at the bottom of the building and the natural-color cornice set each other off.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Cellular aluminum sheet's lightness, high intensity and high flatness guarantee the flatness of the large aluminum curtain wall. Meanwhile the reflections of the surroundings further strengthens the sense of floating. The cellular stone breaks the area limit of natural stone with a size of 1.2m wide x 2.2m high. It also can be used on the dropping ceiling which ensures the integrity of the entry space and renders a unusual drop-off experience.
- Tags
- Islands, Conference, Maritime Silk Road
- Production Technology
- The white stone at the bottom of the building and the natural-color cornice set each other off beautifully,Corresponding to the sea wind of Zhoushan Islands, The wood and rubble, glass and metals are either classic or modern, gentle or vigorous and powerful.
- Design Challenge
- In terms of the design idea, we tried to take "Conference Center in the park" as the core. Looking for design basis from the historical context and geographic and custom features from the city of thousand islands. Trying to explore the conference site building that accords with the local style, customs and historical context. Carrying out the people-oriented practice between history and the contemporary era, the region and civilization.
From the project's technolgy in design, we used the Cellular aluminum sheet, which breaks the area limit of natural stone with a size of 1.2m wide x 2.2m high. It also can be used on the dropping ceiling which ensures the integrity of the entry space and renders a unusual drop-off experience.
In landscape design, manifesting different courtyard themes in the park, and integrating different elements into one. The landscape which can be found inside and outside integrates with the scattered small-volume buildings, Connecting the park concept with the green axis landscape, the building volume is lightened and hidden in the landscape, providing the park with open public activity places. - Project Duration
- The project started to design in 2016 in Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province, China and finished in 2017.
- Operation Flow
- For design, Maritime Silk Road is shown as the main clue from beginning to end. Forming the spatial pattern in which the courtyard governs the park, and nature mingles with the building, Integrating the regional styles along Maritime Silk Road into the park. Manifesting different courtyard themes in the park, and integrating different elements into one. The landscape which can be found inside and outside integrates with the scattered small-volume buildings, Connecting the park concept with the green axis landscape, the building volume is lightened and hidden in the landscape, providing the park with open public activity places. The spanning building form ties up the mountains with the sea in the west and in the east, The open landscape corridor is created for greening the city.
- Research
- Permanent site of International Islands Tourism Conference, Choosing Dongsha Parcel, Zhujiajian, Zhoushan as the site. With the sea in the southeast, and surrounded by mountains in other directions. Westin faces Zhoushan Islands from afar in the north, and Putihai has been built in the south . In the intersection, the concept of "Conference Center in the park" initially comes into being.
With Chinese and foreign envoys arriving and departing, businessmen from different countries delivering goods, and religion believers doing missionary work, “Maritime Silk Road” finally surpassed the vast sea and became the tie connecting China and the world over two thousand years ago. Starting in Qin and Han Dynasties, flourishing in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. Different civilizations mainly crossed the East China Sea, and reached Zhoushan Islands directly. - Inspiration
- The building form which derives from Tang and Song traditions adopts the classic ratio and pattern of the roof and wall in the Tang Dynasty which is solid and stable; The slightly-inclined wall design adopts the traditional building design of Shoufen (thick bottom pillars and thin top pillars) and double pillars, The wall is the extension of the pillars while the foundation is simple and powerful.
- Image Credits
- Image #1: Photographer Jinrong Huang, Main Image, 2017.11.
Image #2: Photographer Jinrong Huang, Optional Image, 2017.11.
Image #3: Photographer Jinrong Huang, Optional Image, 2017.11.
Image #4: Photographer Jinrong Huang, Optional Image, 2017.11.
Image #5: Photographer Jinrong Huang, Optional Image, 2017.11.
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