Silver Landscape Planning and Garden Design · 2024
Yuanye Spring Urban Farm
by Vicky Chan
- A' Design Award 2024 Silver Winner in Landscape Planning and Garden Design
- Awarded April 15, 2024
- CLIENT: Yuanye Spring
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 58,782
- Verification code 4E169517B3 · Verify this award
About Yuanye Spring Urban Farm
Yuanye Spring is an educational facility that seamlessly integrates education, agriculture, and technology. Farming not only serves as a valuable tool for teaching children about history and environmental challenges but also offers an opportunity for them to explore sustainable living on Earth and beyond. Yuanye Spring aims to enhance children's agricultural experience through an enriched hands-on education encompassing farming, technology, history, and sustainability. The goal is to elevate the perception of farming as a profession and inspire more students to pursue studies in agriculture.
Vicky Chan's Yuanye Spring Urban Farm represents a distinguished contribution to contemporary landscape architecture that thoughtfully bridges vernacular craft traditions with productive agricultural infrastructure. The design emerges from a lineage of garden philosophy that honors the integration of contemplative space with functional cultivation, manifesting here through the masterful deployment of a sinuous bamboo pavilion that embraces a central tree in an organic gesture of architectural embrace. The woven bamboo structure demonstrates exceptional technical accomplishment in its graduated densities of construction, transitioning from open lattice framework that permits filtered light and visual permeability to more densely woven passages suggesting shelter and enclosure, all while maintaining a fluid formal continuity that seems to grow naturally from the landscape rather than impose upon it. The compositional sophistication appears in the careful orchestration of scales and materials, where intimate handcrafted elements dialogue productively with the industrial precision of the glass greenhouse complex visible beyond, suggesting a nuanced understanding of how traditional making and contemporary technology might coexist in service of sustainable food production and community gathering. The chromatic relationship between warm bamboo tones and the cool transparency of horticultural glass creates visual tension resolved through the mediating greens of the cultivated landscape, while the atmospheric rendering of distant hills establishes a sense of place rooted in specific topographical and climatic conditions. The concentric organization of planting beds surrounding the central pavilion invites contemplation of cyclical natural processes and the generative relationship between human cultivation and organic growth, while the inclusion of ornamental plantings alongside productive agriculture suggests an integrated vision where beauty and utility need not be separated. How might we understand the gathering spaces woven into productive landscapes as expressions of community values around shared sustenance and collective stewardship?
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Yuanye Spring is an educational facility that seamlessly integrates education, agriculture, and technology. We believe that farming not only serves as a valuable tool for teaching children about history and environmental challenges but also offers an opportunity for them to explore sustainable living on Earth and beyond.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- 8000m2 of urban farm.
- Tags
- URBAN FARM, EDUCATION
- Production Technology
- All materials were upcycled, found, installed or made locally by hand.
- Design Challenge
- Farming Knowledge: Feedback from children and parents in pre-and-post surveys indicates a greater enjoyment of spending time at the farm compared to indoor play areas and classrooms. However, it's worth noting that the results vary based on weather conditions, with high temperatures impacting satisfaction levels. The farm acknowledges the need to further emphasize the rewarding aspects of hard work in a harsh environment, highlighting the importance and necessity of resilience.
- Project Duration
- 2022-2024, WENZHOU, CHINA
- Operation Flow
- Yuanye Spring remains committed to improvement and optimizing the learning experiences for children. By fostering sustainable practices, promoting resilience, and instilling a deeper appreciation for the natural world, we aim to shape future generations with the knowledge and skills needed to address the challenges of the ever-changing world.
- Research
- Net-zero construction: Through active participation in the construction process and the utilization of bamboo and salvaged materials, children have contributed to advancing our net-zero design application. By employing sustainable materials, we have achieved a remarkable 72% reduction in carbon footprint compared to other urban farms.
Circular ecosystem: The farm fosters a circular system where food and water are continuously recycled and reused. Children learn the value of waste reduction and repurposing, understanding that not everything needs to be discarded. They witness the transformation of waste into natural fertilizer and the recycling of rainwater on-site, instilling a sense of responsibility, respect, and care for food resources. The farm also supports a rich biodiversity, with the presence of 20 local species of insects, fish, and birds. Children discover the importance of inclusive environmental design, enabling harmonious coexistence with other species.
Endurance: Our program challenges children to endure physical hardships uncommon in more privileged settings. Tasks such as sawing bamboo, working under the scorching sun, and temporarily disconnecting from smartphones build resilience and persistence. Considering the impact of climate change on multiple countries, cultivating resilience in the face of challenging environments becomes crucial for their future adulthood. - Inspiration
- Yuanye Spring aims to enhance children's agricultural experience through an enriched hands-on education encompassing farming, technology, history, and sustainability. Our goal is to elevate the perception of farming as a profession and inspire more students to pursue studies in agriculture.
Given the current demographic trends in China, where the average age of farmers is 53 years old, it is crucial to revitalize traditional farming practices to ensure a food future. - Image Credits
- Image #1 : AVOID OBVIOUS ARCHITECTS
Image #2 : AVOID OBVIOUS ARCHITECTS
Image #3 : AVOID OBVIOUS ARCHITECTS
Image #4 : YUANYE SPRING
Image #5 : AVOID OBVIOUS ARCHITECTS - Patents
- COPYRIGHTS BELONG TO AVOID OBVIOUS ARCHITECTS AND YUANYE SPRING, 2024
Colors of Yuanye Spring Urban Farm
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Sustainable Architecture and Educational Facility Design
We design award-winning sustainable buildings and educational facilities that integrate ecology, education, and community. Our holistic approach combines environmental responsibility with innovative architecture to create spaces that inspire learning and promote green living for future generations.
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