DESIGN ABSTRACT

This project develops a new urban proposal for a mixed-used site in central Beijing. The aim is to create an urban system that will sustain the growth of the fast growing capital city, which influences the way people live in the city in the future.

The site is located by the boundary of northwest corner of ring two in central Beijing. The existing site is about 800 m by 500 m in area; it is cut off to an island by 3 roads and a canal. There are few site elements: the tube line 2 (central circle line) train depot occupies almost a third of the site area, the rest of the area is currently occupied by residential blocks in different height, a market functions during the day, and small mobile retailers appears different time of the day (and night) in their own routine.The current site issue is, the train depot occupies too large by area in central location, the market and retailers don’t function in its sufficiency as a whole, and there are no regulated areas for the mobile retailers and the site is generally messy.The approach to these issues are to sink the train depot to under the ground level to free up land area for other uses, remain the existing elements of residential, market and other retailers, but to create a system to organise and keep their functions in efficiency as a whole.

The current strategy is by using the triggering system inspired by memory metal, and the idea of flexible space. By combining this two ideas to create a flexible structure that allow individual elements function in its own routine but also create efficiency with others.

The system recruit with a network of connections and nodes, which also form the site density. This network is constructed by layers of typologies, which organises the site ingredient in an atmospheric order of private and public, bright and dark, artificial and organic, quiet and crowded, which also connected and work with the current Beijing urban system.

The proposal organises the site ingredients, which allow them interact with each other within certain rules.

The system creates a new urban typology, which movement happens vertically as well as horizontally. It multiplies the streets, which frees the vehicles, and transform the streets into public spaces.

TRIGGERING SYSTEM VIDEO

watch here : Muscle-wire spider