UCL Portfolio-Ziqi Cao

PORTFOLIO - ZIQI CAO

CONTENTS:

01-A DANDELION’S REBIRTH

02-THE DATA CAGE

03-REMEMBER[ING] SPACE

04-THE ANCIENT

05-BIRD, HUMAN AND NATURE

06-HIDDEN DEPTH

07-HEDGEHOG MIMICRY

08-OTHER WORKS

-ESSAY: THE BLENDS WITH ENVIRONMENT IN GREAT (BAMBOO) WALL

01A DANDELION’S REBIRTH

Project time: May. 2022

Site: Shanghai, China

This project explored the concept of in-between, surrounding environment and our relationship with the nature, questioning the boundary between inside and outside.

During project, the concept of 'in-between' was conceptualised as a connecting relationship, intersecting through transformation and folding intangible qualities inside. It derives not from the experience of a single party, but from the interdependence of two forces in one transition point. Especially in an urban context, how do we defne the boundary between nature and the built urban environment and how can city dwellers be immersed in an enriching experience of nature when its presence steadily diminishes in the face of the ever-intensifying concrete inundation?

This project has stimulated my concept design observation within my surrounding spatial living in Shanghai, Using public installation to create a journey in publicness, exploring the potential and limitations of the existing urban environment and establish new engaging experiences. Bringing nature back into human living space

BACKGROUND

The context of my project demonstrates the current situation of urban living environment, on the objective level: the expansion of the city, reduction of natural resources and the increasing number of complex showing a separation between urban and nature environment; and on the subjective level followed as urban development is people spend less time outdoors, over-work, traffic and other reasons which would hinder their access to travel outside the city. Based on the above, wanted to make a design project that would bring people closer to nature by letting the sense of nature into the city.

SITE LOCATION TARGET AUDIENCE

The project analyzes the demographics of the area and the installation's audience. The primary audience for the installation is the site's interior office workforce, who would spend the majority of their day in site. Additionally, tourists and inhabitants were taken into account. These three groups generally spend a great deal of time engaging in virtual social interactions, spend less time outside, and desire for natural experiences. The problems are intended to be altered by the installation, which aims to satisfy the audience's longing for nature.

DANDELION - NATURE'S REPRESENTATIVE

As a natural product, the dandelion grows in the spring and its seeds are re-rooted in the soil when the wind blows them off the stalks; by the next spring, more dandelion blossoms will have appeared. The dandelion's growth symbolizes the vitality of plants in nature. At the same time, the qualities in nature, specifcally wind, assists in its reproduction. It is an plant which the visible and invisible characteristics of nature intersect in together.

“Be a dandelion in a world of roses

Inspire wishes in kisses of stolen breath

Complete your phase in celestial dreams

Of the Sun moon and stars While setting your roots deep In the warm earth amidst blades of humble grass." -teaganell

THE BOND HISTORICAL TIMELINE

As the financial center of China, The timeline of Shanghai's development reveals the current developing trend in China's frst-tier cities.

SITE SURROUNDINGS

SITE ANALYSIS CONNECTIVITY & ACCESSIBILITY

Based on the analysis, the site is accessible to the public on account of its proximity to major roads. The well-developed transportation routes in the CBD facilitate accessibility of the site and provide opportunities for people to interact with the installation. Additionally, the choice of the site as an intervention in the naturalness of the city can contribute to resolving the current separation between work and residential areas, also serve as a model for other similar workplaces in the neighborhood

STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS & MATERIAL EXPERIMENT

The leaves and branches of a tree are its most vital parts. This section explores the possibility of transforming natural elements into architectural components by extracting their qualities.

In designing the installation, drew inspiration for its structural form from the leafy and branching portions of the tree, owing to my interest in trees and the external natural environment from previous investigations. This is intended to respond to the natural environment with organic forms that allow the installation to blend with the atmosphere of the site. Through their leaves, trees exhale oxygen, while the shadows they cast, and their sense of enclosure provide humans with a sense of protection. In this experiment, a roof was tentatively constructed by arranging leaves in various ways. The effect of the shadows is compared to an adjacent blank ‘feld.’ As the direction of light shifts, the shadows of the site take on an organic form and a ‚natural‘ dynamic quality.

The quality of light The quality of water

Currently, the Bund is a residential and commercial area characterized by a high density of buildings and a fast-paced lifestyle. Transformation of the surroundings and a vertical grid structure are the key features that only emphasize building interconnection at the expense of human interaction, which is contrary to the needs of 25,600 residents per square kilometre.

NATURAL CONDITIONS

1.1.1 The fabric hanging from the top of the installation manage the movement of the wind, enhancing the experience, and the quality of the live environment is revealed as the wind blows the fabric.

Based on the analysis, the site is accessible to the public on account of its proximity to major roads. The well-developed transportation routes in the CBD facilitate accessibility of the site and provide opportunities for people to interact with the installation. Additionally, the choice of the site as an intervention in the naturalness of the city can contribute to resolving the current separation between work and residential areas, also serve as a model for other similar workplaces in the neighborhood

1.1.2 The fabric is closely arranged on both sides of the device to form a cylinder, inviting the wind to enter and interact with the device.

1.2.1 Cut the canopy of the installation with holes to allow direct access to natural light.

1.3.1 Relying on the slope of the site, slope the device close to the lake. The bottom of the device connected to the water surface, providing way for people to get in close contact with the water.

2.1 Transform the top portion of the installation into mirrored material that reflects the surrounding environment. This provides the viewer with multiple perspectives of observation. The surrounding environment is folded into the installation.

3.1.1 Wayfnding and navigation by repeating the arrangement of the installation to unit.

3.2.1 Lowering the height of the installation, the change in height allows new view of the site.

4.1.1 Surface variation of the carving on the installation. Mimic the texture of the surrounding plant.

4.2.1 The translucent panels that surround the installation invite human body to become part of the work.

1.1.3 Increase the area occupied by the fabric. The translucent fabric covers the installation, leaving an entrance to allow the viewer to enter and inspire an immersive experience.

1.2.1a Light is projected onto the ground, with subtle refective shadows appearing in the original view.

1.3.1 Designed from the perspective of water evaporation. The installation is covered with a transparent cover to create an encounter with water through the accumulation of water vapor while protecting the audience from unpredictable bad weather.

2.2 Another mirrored intervention into the structure of the installation. The large area applied across the entire installation provides the viewer with a sense of disorientation.

3.1.2 Pause interval zoom in on the surroundings with changing surface.

3.2.2 Changing the angle of the installation. allows for shift in perspective and focus.

4.1.2 Preventing the effects of weather and wind on the moment

4.2.2 The translucent panels frame specific moments, as a form of extraction, amplifying the surroundings through masking.

3.1.3 Remove the roof to reduce the environmental impact.

1.2.2 Another way of cutting the canopy. By controlling the amount of light entering, noticing the difference between light and shadow and the overlap between the two surfaces. Inspired by the cross-shaped glass window on the main wall of the church in Tadao Ando‘s work The Church of Light.

1.3.3 Create a guardrail surrounded the installation, inspired by the form of water splashing, the installation itself has certain clarity, and the feeling of swaying is amplified by the establishment of the guardrail.

2.3 A countine approch of project 2.1.1 in refective way. The mirrors placed in different positions allow the viewer to capture multiple perspectives and change the landscape with the movement of the body.

3.2.3 The unit is lowered to change the surface, continues to extend into the original land surface of the site that implies pathway.

4.2.3 Exaggerated changes in perspective, framed at the top to capture the sky.

The experiment includes: amplifying the intangible quality of the site, reconfguring the view point, guiding the movement and frame as extraction.

Video link (YouTube): https://youtu.be/FnrBzF2asC8

The quality of wind

FLOOR PLAN

Installations of intervention stored in Soho bund as an example of urban public space in Shanghai. Three installations in the same site as a complete series purposely connects people and the nature to engage encounters, invite the audience come across with the installation in site, discovering the natural atmosphere while experiencing the installation and the invisible wind qualities its responses.

MORPHOLOGICAL CHANGES FROM THE DANDELIONS FEATURE

Taking inspiration from dandelions by analogy. The dynamics of dandelion, a natural product, is expressed in architectural language. It is a medium to coordinate natural ecology and social ecology by giving the building space the characteristics of plants. People can fnd their own unique thinking and feeling about nature in this bio-inspired installation.

INSTALLATION NO.1

The first installation, an observational stage representing the dandelion, is situated at the site's main entrance. The imposing structure is meant to serve as a landmark for the place, indicating to visitors the journey they are going to take.

FROM IDEA TO IMPLEMENTATION

THE DETAILS OF INSTALLATION NO.1

BIODEGRADABLE DANDELION MATERIAL TEST

Biodegradable dandelion material test key ingredients：four, water, gelatine, dandelion seeds and rhizoma.

New material vocabularies are created through material experimentation and adaptable combination forms to suit various installations. In all material combinations, the transparent texture represents the movement of air as a connecting medium. While retaining the natural conceptual world of the dandelion, which includes its aroma, texture, and unique associations to nature, respect and appreciation for the environment and the surroundings.

RENDERING

INSTALLATION NO.2 INSTALLATION NO.3

The process of dandelion seeds being blown by the wind is shown by a second pavilion installation in the site's center. Visitors can access the installation from all sides according to its openness.

The third installation consists of several small spaces that offer the observer various resting and attractive options—assisting commuters at the location and other vistors to leave the concrete architecture and pay attention to the changes in the surroundings and nature that are usually overlooked.

THE DETAILS OF INSTALLATION NO.3

SECTION & RENDERING

02THE DATA CAGE

Project time: Aug. 2021

Site: United StatesMicrosoft, IL, USA

The Data Cage, is based on the era of rapid evolving information. is based on the theme of the relationship between big data and people in the era of rapid evolving information. Through the experience of space, I can understand the big data of network and its impact on people. Inspired by the story of Shut Up and Dance, the third episode of the third season of Black Mirror, I created a conceptual exhibition space with multiple small rooms revealing the impact of the era of information explosion on people from different aspects, and building the narrative space from the perspective of experience, which aimed to provide the audience a deeper understanding of the information age, provoking refection on the contemporary age of information explosion.

MOVIE STAGE 1 MOVIE STAGE 2 MOVIE STAGE 3 MOVIE STAGE 4

The hero is hacked into his computer and threatened with his secrets to coerce him into completing missions.

The hero carries out his mission in collaboration with different people, all of whom are threatened by the hackers with their secrets.

The hero is threatened with a duel with others in exchange for ultimate survival, shooting to kill.

The hackers did not keep their promise and made their secret public causing the family relationships of all the members to break down.

TARGET AUDIENCE RESEARCH

My initiative aims to reveal the crises and dangers that lie beneath the peaceful veneer of big data by provide participants to experience various spaces.

LIFE SCENES RE-ENACTED

In the current online environment, people are both the snoopers and the snooped, we proft quickly from the information circulating, but also as a source of data collected information, big data era as a double-edged sword brings benefts but also many hidden dangers.

SITE

200 E Randolph St #200 Chicago, IL 60601 United StatesMicrosoft, IL, USA

The site was chosen next to a frm whose primary focus is digital information. The residents of this region are the most affected by the information age since their daily lives, modes of transportation, etc. are all supported by electronic devices and the internet. I expect that, as a function of this design, the locals will have a deeper grasp of big data and be able to spot the hidden dangers associated with their future use.

LAYOUT GENERATION

The majority of people’s daily actions in the information age are infuenced by the internet and big data, with adolescents and middle-aged individuals being the most affected.

Big data poses a persistent threat to our privacy and information security, although surveys indicate that the majority of individuals are either uninformed of the problem or choose to overlook it in order to beneft from the information provided by big data.

THE QR CODE

As there are multiple small installations in the space, visitors can scan the QR code on the side of each installation to receive an introduction and additional details about it. At the same time, information about the user is continuously collected during the scanning process to build a personal character analysis, and it is interesting to note that the visitor is unaware that he or she is being tracked by the data during the visit.

Activities affected by the information age from all ages

ROOM DESCRIPTION

As a conceptual installation, several aspects are chosen to illustrate the infuence of the information explosion era on individuals and to develop a narrative space from an experiential standpoint.

ROOM 1

RENDER IMAGE

People move from one space to the next via platforms of varied heights, guide the viewer’s movements. People will experience the space by concentrating on the ground-level installation and ignoring the changes above head.

ROOM 2.1

The subsequent rooms describe the processes and ways in which Big Data access information in the networked information age. Room 2.1 Representing the sharing and circulation of information.

ROOM 2.1

DOOR HANDLE DETAIL

From an objective standpoint, Room 1 focuses on how the majority of people currently feel about the era of big data and the current predicament individuals fnd themselves in. The experience of Room One reveals how the information era has now invaded everyone’s daily lives and how individuals live in an apparently stable environment while avoiding and being unaware of the unknown and unpredictability that lies beneath it.

The current fow of information allows us to easily and quickly access the information we want; each time, the process of accessing information is like opening a door, for example, by using social software, posting, or browsing a website.

Room 1 The current situation under the big data and how people response.

Room 2.1

The way Big Data access to information sharing and circulation of information

Room 3

Shifting perspectives of the voyeur and the voyeurized

Room 2.3

The way Big Data analyses information and the process Room 2.4 The hidden dangers of the information age

Room 4 The inundation and explosion of information

Room 5

Exposing the dangers of the information age

Room 6

The brainwashing of people in the information age and the personal analysis darkroom

Room 2.2 The way Big Data accesses information Traces of information remain

Room 1 immersive image

The platform unit connected to the foating planes at the top through tubes.

Room 1 exploded view

Space Platform Unit

Soft material canvas top

ROOM 2.1 INSTALLATIONS

ROOM 2.2

The corridor space tells the story of the traces of information that remain, acting as a transition throughout the space and linking it to the previous room. The room records the traces of personal information left by the frequent movements of people in the previous room. I use the hanging ribbons to show the different messages left by people and fll the room, aware of the tracking of people in the age of big data as they move around.

ROOM 2.1 RENDER PERSPECTIVE

Room 2.1 amplifes the notion of doors and passageways by showing the viewer as a recipient of information by moving around the room.

ROOM 2.3

Room 2.3 shows the way and process of collecting information with Big Data after a large amount of information has been acquired. The different sizes and shapes of the blocks represent various forms of data and modularity.

Internet ChatBrowsing websitesWebsite BookmarkingSocial SoftwareWeb posting

Room 2.2 render perspective

The space consists of four small rooms, with the middle section representing the hub of information, which Big Data collects through our electronic devices and mouse clicks and connects to everywhere through pipes on the foor.

ROOM 2.4

In understanding the ability of Big Data to collect information, 2.4 Space shows the hidden dangers of the information age. People often register to use the software’s features without perusing the regulations it offers, which often contain unequal contracts.

The space mainly explores issues or risks where information is hidden, and the semi-underground design better highlights the hidden meaning. The narrative plot of the space builds on the different shifting perspectives of people peeking and being peeked at in a fow of introduction-revelation- and refection.

The room is dominated by a staircase inspired by the infnite loop of steps in the movie Inception and intended to disorient the observer when touring the area through staggering levels.

Room 2.3 exploded viewtisciuntNatem

Room 1 Ihilla dolupta tisciuntNatem Room 1 Ihilla dolupta tisciuntNatem Room 1 Ihilla dolupta tisciuntNatem

The protruding spheres on the wall visualise and highlight the inequalities in the network regulations to increase attention.

ROOM 3

Room 3 is a circular space in the center of the design that serves as a transition (the frst few rooms are based on how information is acquired / the back is dominated by the risk of information explosion).

ROOM 4

Room IV is characterised by an overfow and explosion of information everywhere, like threads connecting and invading all parts of our lives. The room is divided into two parts, enhancing the visual impact on the viewer through solid contrasts of light and dark

ROOM 5

Room 5 echoes Room 1, where the stable structure of Room 1 makes people unaware of the dangers lurking in the information age, whereas Room 5 places different scenes of people’s lives in suspended glass spheres, revealing that there are no secrets in the information age and that life is full of instability.

The room is primarily made of two sections to create a sense of transition, allowing the observer‘s perspective from the voyeur/perspective user’s to the voyeur and the harmed’s.

The frst part is dominated by a linear installation that serves as a basic introduction to this space. The second part expresses the virtual line through light.

The role of lines is to alter and infuence people’s actions in space, expressing the notion that people are lost in information and, at the same time, lose the ability to distinguish between true and false information and to think independently.

The platform in the center is set up such that the viewer can look from one side to the other, implying that the voyeur/profteer is also being voyeurised as a result of beneftting from the information age.

By presenting the most ubiquitous scene of daily life in an unexpected manner, the viewer is able to immerse oneself in the setting and feel the negative repercussions of the information age more viscerally and intensely.

Real line installation 1 Real line installation 2

Virtual line room

ROOM 6

The fnal room, the summary space, describes the reality of the information age’s threats to humans. The room’s walls are a patchwork of miniature blocks sewn together to represent fragmented information, and the area is dominated by an installation of a human fgure, demonstrating how fguration alters the way people think and has a profound effect on how we perceive things.

THE DARK ROOM

QR CODE WORKING PROCESS

In each room, QR codes are placed on the side of the exhibit. When a person scans the installation with their electronic device, introductory information about it will appear. As the fnal phase of the tour, the darkroom encourages the tourist to set their mobile phone on the sensor table, where the gadget automatically captures information from the visitor and provides an audience analysis of the visitor’s behavior on projection screens. This information is derived from QR codes scanned by visitors throughout their visit.

The QR code’s design serves as a hidden theme throughout the project. A comprehensive game experience is produced through the activities of the audience during the process and the reveal of the fnal result in dark room. The process gives the audience to experience frsthand what it is like to be monitored by big data.

The purpose of the dark room on one side of the room is to create an immersive experience. A means for visitors to directly experience the effects of big data on humans.

Vertical standing block units Patchwork roof and hanging block unitsBlock piecing wall

03-

REMEMBER[ING] SPACE

An exploration of the memory of ritual through the renovation of a kiln factory

Project time: Sep. 2022

Site: Shanghai, China

The project is the fusion of 'new' and 'old', exploring and recreating the cultural memory of brick kilns.

- How do we extend the life trajectory of an existing space within a new construction?

- How can the existing interior narrative inform future development?

In this project, designed and reconstructed a kiln cultural center on the site of a historic brick kiln that reflects modernity and tradition, commemorates, transmits the history of brick firing, and invites people to bring the site back to life.

//SITE ANALYSIS

- Ritual & ritual space

Ritual is an repetitive and meaningful behaviours that are systematically used by a group of people with a purpose greater than the action it self. As a form of psychological characteristics, rituals can reflect the spiritual and emotional needs of people.

- Ritual spirit under the BURNING history

- Human needs-driven [spiritual/emotional]

- Collective, interactive behaviour

- Meaning beyond actions

- Kiln fring - An achive of burning history

Source: http://www.china.org.cn/learning_chinese/news/2009-02/05/content_17230207.htm

Fired bricks are originally discovered by the ancient Romans.

During the frst century of their civilisation and used the bricks for public and private buildings all over the empire.

The project is located in the Pudong New Area of Shanghai, where water networks and natural vegetation are abundant. The site is close to the canal, convenient transportation, the old rely on water transportation; The site is surrounded by a number of villages, which used to be the main source of livelihood and gathering point for the villagers.

In this site, the kiln factory occupies a large area, which is the only public place around. But as factories stop production, the trend of village hollowing out is increasingly severe, the once prosperous land has lost its former glory.

After all bricks have been allowed time to dry they are placed in a kiln for burning which fnishes off the brick to achieve the optimum strength and colour.

During the 12th century bricks were reintroduced to northern Germany from northern Italy. This created the brick gothic period which was reduced style of Gothic architecture previously very common in northern Europe.

Brick Gothic style buildings Kilns

- Site situation

//HISTORICAL ANALYSIS

Bricks can be

clay

calcium silicate and concrete. With clay bricks being the more popular, they are now manufactured using three processes soft mud, dry press and extruded.

Source: http://www.brickdirectory.co.uk/html/brick_history.htmlture-2017-best-of-year-winner-for-trade-show-booth/

The transformation of the old brick kiln over the past 50 years is emblematic of China's economic and productive reforms, and it was once the main source of income for the surrounding residents. It's gone through a lot of changes and it's lost its prosperity. Now it has become the memory of the older generation.

/Cultural memory from past to the present /Spirtual links evoke emotions /A testimony to the development of chinses history

made from variety of materials the most common being

but also

Birck making 1475 Utrecht Birck making 1695 in the Netherlands

Birck making 1761 FranceBirck making 1902 in Worcestershire

kiln Clamp kiln Beehive kiln Hoffmann kiln

//PROJECT AIM & INTENTION

How do we extend the life trajectory of an existing space within a new construction? How can the existing inteior narrative inform future development?

-Design:

Build a brick kiln culture centre that echoes modernity and tradition, commemorates, and passes along the history of brick fring, and attracts people back together

-Main concept:

A fusion of the old & new

//DESIGN STRATEGY

//PROPOSED

1. outdoor installation based on the structure of the chimney pipe, providing a resting area for people.

The original building

Add arch elements

It reproduces the old kiln landscape of more than 200 years ago, refecting the continuation of the past.

The

The chimney is transformed into an ecological tower to improve the pollution problem.

All furniture units can be combined and moved with each other, providing more spatial possibilities.

2. extra green belt and plants to absorb CO2.

3. Sit bench

4. lowered the height of the wall on the water side and add an waterfront platform

Embedded pipe

Renovation of ecological tower Put in modular furniture

Structure reinforcement

whole site is implanted with pipes and arched devices to change the moving lines.

Structural steel partitions are implanted on the upper foors to support the roof.

FLOOR PLAN //LANDSCAPE AXONOMETRIC

//GROUND AND SECOND FLOOR PLANS

I investigate transformational possibilities from both historical and contemporary viewpoints. The ground level has been constructed as a museum devoted to the history of brick kilns and kiln techniques, with new arching features preserving the existing brick kiln. The combination of the new brick arches and the old brick kiln transforms the factory from a manufacturing identity into a site for cultural transmission, transporting us back in memory.

//HISTORICAL CONTINUITY THROUGH MOVEMENT&PROJECTION //PIPE INSERTION DETAILS

Architectural features of 'arch' and 'threshold'' in the kiln Different sizes of organic material pipes are placed in both ground & first foor. Inside the pipeline are holographic projections and interactive devices, which are mainly used for the interaction between people and space.

//RENDERING

The second level has been built as an emerging ceramics studio to establish a link between the past and the present through ceramics. Using principles of modular design, all furniture items may be merged, replaced, and rearranged, bringing different types of space to the small rural building and providing additional spatial options, thereby allowing the interior layout to adapt to the changing needs of the future.

main entrance link to the frst foor with spiral staircase

Placed

Location: 1L-The exhibition hall entrance

Function: Holographic projection simulates the interaction between workers and visitors in the past

Location：1L-Brick-burning craft exhibition hall

Function：Display the brick fring process and related historical fgures, so as to increase the understanding of brick kiln.

in the entrance and aisle parts can increase the sense of experience.

Location：2L-Shared workbench

Function ： Through the modular furniture layout workshop, the layout and moving lines can be changed according to different needs.

//SPACE FUNCTION

To solve the problem, the design concept proposed was to explore the integration of the old and new in the site, bringing people back to the site, reactivating its culture and interactivity. The purpose of the transformation is to adapt to people and space. We should adapt to the environment with a more open state.

We hope that the surrounding people can participate in it, so as to promote development. The frst point is to transform the original internal production mode of the site into an external exhibition, so that the site is changed from closed to open. The second point is to start from the fring process, from the original industrial land to public space. The third point responds to environmental sustainability issues by changing the site's original identity from a carbon emitter to a carbon absorber.

Location：Garden platform

Function ： A landscaped garden on the roof provides a space for visitors to rest and entertain.

Location：Ecological tower

Function：The tower flters out harmful gases from the combustion process and converts them into energy to help plants grow.

1L Brick Kiln Museum

2L Ceramic Workshop

A rooftop garden

Location：2L-Ceramic workshop

Function ： Call for more people to know and like the fring process, let the visitors participate in the production.

04- THE ANCIENT

Mathematical and physical transformation of natural organisms

Project time: Dec. 2021

Site: Wādī al-Ḥītān Faiyum Governorate, Egypt

The aim of the project is to mathematically transfer the word "ancient" into the language of current spatial form. For us, "ancient" is solitary: the site is located in a desert two hours outside of the modern city, surrounded by fossilized whales and rocks, with no architecture around. The whale's skeleton is also lonely in a symbolic sense, as it comes from a history that does not belong to us and carries it into the present in the shape of bones.

From the inspiration of the whale skeleton, the design creates a museum for the site, seeking to highlight the sense of history of the site via architectural form and function and to provide direction for the land's future development and environmental conservation. The project consider space as a processual experience, Through the temporal transformation of materiality linked audience to the site and the "ancient."

The site is located in the middle of the desert, a two-hour drive from the nearest city. Visitors are used to driving or hiking to complete their touring programme. The buildings and heritage are preserved in the hollows, the overall terrain is fat and there are many weathered stones. The path created by people's feet passes through the north side of the building, and similarly there is an entrance to the south side, articulated by a platform.

The perimeter of the site is dotted with deserts and oases, dilapidated cities and streets, houses made of clay. It is as if all the material is related to the sand and the unique climate of the area. The houses here have narrow windows, oases are scarce and the streets are flled with sand. In history, this was originally a riverbed at the bottom of the sea, and after millions of years of evolution, the waters faded away, leaving the skeletons of whales here for people to admire.

//SURROUNDINGS AND HISTORY

Over tens of millions of years of evolution, this barren desert has taken on rich historical connotations and environmental and ecological problems. All this points to an urgent need: how to present the past and indicate the future of the development with an architecture. Environmental protection, architectural form and building function are all important considerations.

//MATERIAL ANALYSIS //VISUAL FIELD ANALYSIS

There are many boulders in the site and the preserved skeletons ofthe whales are set against them. The building is a semi-open space.with no enclosed maintenance structures around it. The aim is toexpose the new building material to the sand and to allow it toundergo a transformation over time into a material similar to thewhale's skeleton.

The structure's timber frame and concrete foundation will deteriorate with time.

- The degradation of wood has the ability to provide protection against insects and to purify the air, and the progressive degradation process will gradually lower the entire structure to the sand level over time, exactly as the square grass lattice on the Dunhuang ground helps to prevent the fow of sand.

- The concrete foundation of the structure will not totally deteriorate with weathering and time, but the texture and material left behind will remain on the site forever as a monument for people to remember and recall the site's past.

Deserts and Oasis

Cities and Streets

Dwelling

The points of force selected here are those of whale movement, focusing on the curvature of the vertebrae and the change in shape of the bone profle during the gradual change here.

A strong structural skeleton of the building has been designed in the transverse profile. The asymptote of the skeleton is modelled in the longitudinal profle as a curve parameter during the movement of the whale.

The bridge extending from the front of the building joins the sand dunes in the site and the building itself.

Inside the building the platforms and structural skeleton together form an enveloping structure with many gaps for people to walk through and communicate.

Some vertical structures protrude to act as a shield from the sun and also to increase the diffuse effect of the interior. People play and play on the terrace.

The platform's ground floor is elevated to create a cavity in the hot desert conditions. Providing shade and rest, it serves as a shelter from the desert.

The building is located in a sunken flat area of the desert, surrounded by sand dunes. People enter the site mainly from the south. The design of the site includes a terrace where people enter the building via an aisle and follow the decorative structure. At the same time, these exquisite structures respond semantically to the motif of the 'whale'.

The staggered platforms at the end touch each other and channel visitors from the south onto the frst foor platform. This is the starting point of the narrative, where one first sees the huge translucent canopy.

To the north of the building is a pathway for people to exit, which serves as a gathering square for the building. There are many boulders in the site and the preserved skeletons of the whales are set against them.

//UNDERGROUND PLAN & ROOF PLAN

//DESIGN DETAILS //RENDERING

The outdoor space is derived from a tribute to the desert's parent theme. have tried to respond to the softness of the gravel and the hardness of the rock with hard borders. These narrow spaces are shaped by the wind and sand, and at any moment the passage of time takes on the atmosphere of whale skeletons.

the change in spatial density from north to south weaves a broken history into a story

In the underground plan and the roof plan, we can clearly observe the interaction between structure and space. The sense of contrast is deliberately enhanced in the design to metaphorically represent the great disconnect between modern technology and history and to provoke visitors to think about it. The dismantled axonometric drawings reflect the alignment of the individual structures and spaces. This is also expressed as a graphic narrative in the Longitudinal Section.

//LONGITUDINAL SECTION

Southern Elevation

Various fragmented spaces with historical origins are combined by a translucent roof. These dense, narrow spaces interact with people's bodies, handing the visitor the variations of a whale's skeleton through a metamorphosis of movement. The progressive collapse of the structure pays homage to history, while its primary objective is to respond to the temporality of the site, standing alongside with the whale fossils and rocks. Creating an atmosphere of "bones" that is both mathematical and emotional.

//BIRDS AND CITIES

Due to the impact of climate change, we are seeing systematic homelessness of animals, plants, and humans, Fortunately, people have noticed this problem in some fields. The media advocate for more attention whichhuman beings should pay to reduce carbon emissions; scientists have alsostarted investigations to plant more trees on the earth.

05- BIRD, HUMAN AND NATURE

However, architectural practices have remained the same when the course of human, plant, and animal livelihood are significantly altered under climate change.

Project time: Nov. 2022

Site: New York, US

With the accelerated urbanization in recent centuries, the expansion of buildings and cities has become unstoppable, and numerous manmade objects have been dividing the ecological habitats for the animals. Facing these crucial challenges, there is a voice that suggests eradicating the cities, but we try to come up with a more feasible and sustainable solution, which is to reimagine a new type of architecture to balance, reconcile, and integrate human expansion and animal needs. This will not only be a feld station for humans, but also a transit point for animals, especially birds. Potentially, this concept might be also further applied to every new building, which could facilitate the cities to become another kind of forest.

We hope to solve this dilemma and allow architecture to participate in the ecological system.

With the accelerated urbanization in recent centuries, the expansion of buildings and cities has become unstoppable, and numerous man-made objects have been dividing the ecological habitats for the animals. Facing these crucial challenges, there is a voice that suggests eradicating the cities, but we try to come up with a more feasible and sustainable solution, which is to reimagine a new type of architecture to balance, reconcile, and integrate human expansion and animal needs.

Our site locates at the Skytop Quarry in Syracuse, which has been abandoned and turning to a habitat for various species; meanwhile, Syracuse is on one of the most significant migration routes in North America. Similar to the other cities, the urbanization is threatening the natural habitats, and a stopover habitat is necessary for the species.

STRUCTURE

It includes three main components: a bird shelter, labs with controlled temperature, and public circulations with passive heating in winter.

The bird shelter is almost set seamlessly with the labs so that the researchers could easily and directly get the first-hand data and records of the birds, and the birds could get appropriate care with the researchers’ consistent monitoring.

The volume of public visiting space is connected to the bird shelter by the mezzanine floors of the labs so that the visitors could experience the scientifc study process without disturbing the researchers. The volume of labs is elevated from the ground to preserve the natural landscape and habitats; multiple types of research areas are organized in it according to different conditions of thermal, sunlight, circulation, and spatial distribution.

This will not only be a field station for humans, but also a transit point for animals, especially birds. Potentially, this concept might be also further applied to every new building, which could facilitate the cities to become another kind of forest.

Project time: Nov. 2020

Site: Iceland

MAZE DIVERGENCE SHELTER DESTINATION

According to the different situations of Iceland's citizens in history, the use of different t es of architectural s aces re ects the events of the celand s histor .

Giuseppe Terragni's Danteum used the text of he ivine o ed to generate a se uence of spaces that brings viewers through Dante's mythical trip. The imaginary depiction of nferno urgator and eaven is concreti ed with geometry. The project is regarded as exemplary of how a spatial structure can express a sophisticated cultural meaning without an explicit"vocabulary" of architectural symbols.

If architecture is to be viewed as an open system instead of a purely autonomous discipline, its design outcomes would heavily rely on inputs from external references, as well as the "translating mechanism" that brings them into being. Many of such considerations, obtained from the range and depth of human culture, need to be more materialized.

This project is proposed based on the history of Iceland. This monument persists in the Iceland landscape ad\nd history both symbolically and physically. This projectt’s persistence or permanence is a result of its capacity to constitute the Iceland landscape, its history and art, its being and memory.

Each history period is translated into a spatial prototype, and developed into twofold: The lower part is an IMMERSIVE ENVIRONMENT in which visitors play the role of the focused movie character. In a story full of immediate perceptions, they experience Iceland's History arranged by the NARRATIVE LINE The upper part provides a review of the scenes from a PRIVILEGED VIEW This time they become level-headed observers while the other visitors lingering in the lower art beco e their sub ects. ignificant historical events follow the TIMELINE to form a continuous logical experience.

EARLY HISTORY

Visitors walk into a maze, its circuitous passage reflects the absurdity placed on early Iceland settlers. After a dark, uneasy passage, which symbolizes the harsh environment. visitors enter a huge spheric space. A bridge leads people to its center, where the niches around come into sight. A narrow light beam from the top renders the space as warm and secure.

UNDER NORWEGIAN AND DANISH KINGS

After a lot of hard time and enormous work,Iceland people got the opportunity to build their own country. However, when the world war begun celand was forced b and to ta e part in the World war and paid a lot. Faced with international situation at that ti e whether to oin the waror uit. hatever their choice is a res ective conse uence awaits in a s all room within the next chamber. Each chamber is a closed space, symbolizing that no matter what choice he makes, the final destination is a tragedy.

SETTLEMENT AND COMMONWEALTH REPUBLIC OF ICELAND

The labyrinth symbolizes that early settlers have been wandering, searching and wandering for the first hundred years of their lives. ave to live li e a tra here was a long con ict histor between aristocrats and churches, These early settlers come to a crossroad with two options. The tiring but gentle one: returning to nor alit and ee the title through a staircase. he uic but hard one: abandoned the title will lead a deeply social reform.

After the World War 2, Iceland became an independent republic. assed the cold war eriod celand had a war about the cod resources and ocean with UK,cod wars were a series of 20thcentury confrontations between the United Kingdom (with aid fro est er an and celand about fshing rights in the orth Atlantic. Each of the disputes ended with an Icelandic victory.

Iceland expanded its national waters still further, from four nautical iles to iles and during the second cod war this boundar expanded to 50 miles.

//SCENARIO IN DAILY LIFE

07- HEDGEHOG MIMICRY

A wearable protective device created for sensitive areas, designed to visualize the neglected peripersonal space.

Project time: Feb. 2021

Escalators Transport

When I approach strangers, I maintain a certain distance involuntarily, especially in social space And when this distance is passively shortened, a sense of insecurity and anxiety arises inside me, and it activates my sense of protection of my personal space Philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer linked this awareness to the “hedgehog effect” in nature, which refers to the phenomenon in which hedgehogs stay close to each other to keep warm when it is cold but keep a distance so as not to stab each other.

went on to list several scenarios where people in public places are accustomed to maintaining a certain distance to ensure they can socialize effectively and be in a state of emotional stability.

Seats for sharing

Public Venues

//THEORETICAL BACKGROUND RESEARCH

What is peripersonal space

‘Peripersonal space is the frst margin between the surface of our body and the external world.’ p1

Iachini, Tina, Yann Coello, Francesca Frassinetti, and Gennaro Ruggiero. “Body space in social interactions: a comparison of reaching and comfort distance in immersive virtual reality.” PloS one 9, no. 11 (2014): e111511.

‘This spatially guided protection of the body surface is one of the most basic sensorimotor problems facing any animal.’ p845-846

Graziano, Michael SA, and Dylan F. Cooke. “Parieto-frontal interactions,

Why do people need distance/personal space from each other

‘peripersonal space …has also been thought of as a protective buffer surrounding the body and prompting defensive actions (Coello et al. 2012; Graziano and Cooke 2006). p1

and Vincenzo Paolo Senese. “The infuence of anxiety and personality factors on comfort and reachability space: a correlational study.” Cognitive processing 16, no. 1 (2015): 255-258.

What are the qualities of the space around the individual

‘two traditions of research have explored body space: one about peripersonal space in the neuro-cognitive feld, one about personal space in the social psychology feld.‘ p1

Sensitivity

to touch/distance for different people

women preferred a greater distance toward approachers than did men…One study also showed an interaction with women preferring male approachers at a further distance.’ P15

Andersson, Ellen, and Tora Sjökvist. “Closing in on social anxiety: Investigating social anxiety, personality, affectivity, and social distance.” (2019).

Factors affecting sensitivity

‘it is an ‘‘emotional’’ area called ‘‘personal space’’ that people feel like ‘‘their private space’’ and cannot be intruded by others without causing discomfort.‘ p1

Problems that can result from interpersonal proximity

‘The results show that SAD is associated with distorted estimation ofnterpersonal distance.’ p1250

Givon‐Benjio, Nur, Roni Oren‐Yagoda, Idan M. Aderka, and Hadas Okon‐Singer. Biased distance estimation in social anxiety disorder: A new avenue for understanding avoidance behavior.” Depression and Anxiety 37, no. 12 (2020): 12431252.

The physical distance between people is the space around the bodies of different individuals, a sanctuary with emotions and privacy. This space originates from human instinct and is diversifed according to the differences between individuals.

//BODY LANGUAGE

To visualise the peripersonal space as a protective space, tried to design the support structure of the installation in the form of a wraparound wrap. And based on the notion that the size of this space can be contracted or expanded depending on the context, emotion, and personal characteristics, provide the appropriate size for the different body parts. Enables the installation to visualise the idea while injecting new expressions into various positions.

Legend (200ppl in total) Gender

conducted further social research based on individual differences in gender, age, and personality. The study found that most people feel their private sphere is being violated due to their proximity to others in today’s high-density society. In contrast, young people and women are more sensitive to protecting their sphere. The head, neck, wrists, and abdomen areas are more private than others and require more peripersonal space.

Iachini, Tina, Gennaro Ruggiero, Francesco Ruotolo, Armando Schiano di Cola,

personal space, and defensive behavior.” Neuropsychologia 44, no. 6 (2006): 845-859.

Iachini, Tina, Yann Coello, Francesca Frassinetti, and Gennaro Ruggiero. “Body space in social interactions: a comparison of reaching and comfort distance in immersive virtual reality.” PloS one 9, no. 11 (2014): e111511.

Iachini, Tina, Gennaro Ruggiero, Francesco Ruotolo, Armando Schiano di Cola, and Vincenzo Paolo Senese. “The infuence of anxiety and personality factors on comfort and reachability space: a correlational study.” Cognitive processing 16, no. 1 (2015): 255-258.

//MODEL SET UP

3D modelling and renderings of the devices, each designed to provide a full range of protection and safety distances to the body parts

//WEARABLE DEVICES

HEDGEHOG MIMICRY is an experimental project not designed for a s ecifc erson. he installation is built on bod basis and visualise a virtual s ace of distance between eo le. he device has a degree of variabilit and e ibilit that rotects the eri ersonal area without hindering the develo ent of a sense of closeness

'Walk' Capture duration and our sense of self Performance

Wooden sticks, fire, thermal paper

‘Wind, Rope, Movement’ - Explore our relationship with the surroundings Installation group work plastic sheet with twine

‘To present / Be present’ - be part of the work

Installation + Stage performance White cardboard

''flower a day'

Drawing Water colour

'We Protest, Protect, and Resist' - Graphic design with environmental theme Graphic design, products, cloth Acrylic paints

'Re-construction' Waste reuse to construction material Material experiment

Building waste, resin

‘Our’ connect human to the more-than-human-world

Portrait Photography Black and white film

ESSAY:

The blends with environment in Great (bamboo) Wall - A manifesto of the ‘Anti-Object’ concept by Kengo Kuma

Collaboration between humans and nature has been critical subjects constantly referred in Eastern culture, spatial design, and architecture. esigned b engo u a he reat a boo all fg. is art of the project "Commune By The Great Wall", located in Juyongguan, nearby the reat all of hina. ts signifcance within the disci line of architecture has been the catalyst for my investigation. This internal-external articulation of space is generally reflected in Kuma's appeal on his conjecture of nti b ect . u a addresses environ ental and intangible ualities as intrinsic to architectural condition to form 'environmental connection systems'.2

architecture critic has also been alarmed by "Le Corbusier's stubborn pursuit" of architectural designs that only make sense at the formal level Upon being revealed to the public, this theory stirred up rebellion against and criticism of modern architectural forms, thereby polarising critics. 5

The 'Anti-object' concept may be considered an excessive obliteration of architecture6, but ideally, architecture that blends with its surroundings can act as a 'device'7 that connects mankind to environment. Kuma consistently shows an extraordinary prudence and awareness of local conditions and spatial layering8. The Great (Bamboo) Wall endeavours to complement the structure of the Great Wall along the ridgeline through topography and space arrangement. i ilar to runo aut and ntonin a ond s eco architecture', which pursues a balanced strategy between architecture and the surroundings through use of materials, Kuma utilises site conditions and the properties of bamboo material to realise the openness of architecture in terms of construction and perception in the Great (Bamboo) Wall.

This essay will examine significant aspects of the 'Anti-object' strategy embodied in the Great (Bamboo) Wall, including site-specificity spatial layering , and material properties , and also explore how it blends with nature to provide a serene, interconnected experience for the public.

whether the are sitting or standing and that terra fr a is continuousl "operating as its proportional figuration" This indicates that all possible relationships between entity and space depend on the changing form of the ground. Kuma contended that architecture should be 'Anti-object', which becoming unified with the surrounding space to create a holistic relationship . Kuma's other work, Kiro-san Observatory (fig.2), achieves the ultimate union between the building and the surrounding landscape. It restores Kiro-san's mountain contour and explores the recessed form to conceal architecture in .

like a framework that accentuates the surrounding environment. This strateg su orts the essa s ain argu ent which utilises site s ecifcit in 'Anti-object' to interlinking architecture and nature. The following discussion further examines the specific aspect of the "Anti-object" strategy: how the harmony between human and nature is consummated through s ace confguration in the reat a boo all.

The theory of 'Anti- object' comes mainly from Kuma's aversion to the long-standing tendency of architecture to focus exclusively on form and visual appeal advocated by Le Corbusier 3 Nonetheless, Kuma is not the only architect to promote 'Anti-object' concept. Reyner Banham, a British

1 Kengo Kuma, Anti-object: The dissolution and disintegration of architecture (London: AA Publishing, 2008), 8.

First aspect in the 'Anti-object' concept is anchoring site context, which respecting the dominance of the topography over architecture. Weiner suggests that architects should have an "environmental [and] topographical based consciousness of architecture" . ite conte t is a ri ar factor encountered in architecture as it plays a complementary role in architectural space. One of the foremost architectural historians and critics, Joseph Rykwert, argued that people depended on the solid and stable ground,

2 Jose Maria Cabeza Lainez and Juan Ramon Jimenez Verdejo, "The Japanese experience of environmental architecture through the works of Bruno Taut and Antonin Raymond," Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering 6, no. (2007): 39, https://doi.org/10.3130/jaabe.6.33.

3 Jared Langevin, "Reyner Banham: In Search of an Imageable, Invisible Architecture," Architectural Theory Review 16, no. 1 (2011): 3, doi: 10.1080/13264826.2011.560389.

4 Ibid, 4.

i ilarl reat ba boo wall refutes the erce tion that architecture ust be a se arate disconnected whole fro its environ ent. nstead it affr s that the ground is a dominant spatial form, turning the base of architecture into a long, segmented plane placed at ground level, forming a complete continuu to atch the undulating terrain of the site fg. .

This enables it to effectively blend with the local environment, and it seems

5 Roger Pulvers, "Architect Kuma Kengo:'a product of place'," ASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL-JAPAN FOCUS 11, no. 26 (2013): 2, https://apjjf.org/-Roger-Pulvers/4141/article.pdf.

6 Frank Weiner, "Architecture as such: refutations and conjectures of quality in the work of Kengo Kuma and WG Clark," arq: Architectural Research Quarterly 11, no. 3-4 (2007): 249, doi: 10.1017/S1359135500000749.

7 Pulvers, "Architect Kuma Kengo:'a product of place'," 3.

8 Matteo Bel ore, "On Japanese Spatial Layering," Le Carre Bleu-Feuille Internationale D'architecture, no.2 (2012): 1, http://www.lecarrebleu.eu/allegati/LCB%202-2012_INGLESE_.pdf.

9 "Great (Bamboo) Wall," KENGO KUMA AND ASSOCIATES, published October 2002, https://kkaa.co.jp/works/architecture/great-bamboo-wall/.

10 Cabeza et al., "The Japanese experience of environmental architecture," 33.

11 Miwon Kwon, "One Place after Another: Notes on Site Speci city," October 80, no.1 (1997): 85, doi:10.2307/778809.

12 Bel ore, "On Japanese Spatial Layering," 1.

13 Jin Baek, "Between Material Sensuousness and Thingness: the Signi cance of the Structural Glass in Kengo Kuma’s Water/Glass House from the Perspective of Phenomenology," Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering 12, no. (2013): 1, https://doi.org/10.3130/jaabe.12.1.

14 Weiner, "Architecture as such," 245.

15 Baek, "Between Material Sensuousness and Thingness," 4.

16 Xiao-Li Fu, "Research on the Architectural Design Method of Green Materials Related to Teahouse Space: Taking the Bamboo House for example," IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, vol. 186, no. 2 (2018): 2, doi:10.1088/1755-1315/186/2/012057.

17 Kuma, Anti-object, 59-77.

18 Lainez and Verdejo, "The Japanese experience of environmental architecture," 37. elfore n anese atial ering

econdl s atial la ering creates uidit over e terior and interior s aces. Indeed, spatial hierarchy, put forward in the 'Anti-object' theory is an important concept, especially when linking architecture to its external environment. Different from the excessive use of concrete in Western architectural spaces, Japanese culture has a knack for using partitions and blinds to give architecture a sense of openness and transparency . Matteo elfore osited that the s atial connections sha e the s atial order within architecture realising a continuu uid s ace . In support, Hanlon Don argued that the types of spatial layering in architecture can be "horizontal, vertical, concentric and radial"20.

reat a boo all hotogra hed b atoshi sa awa

igure iro an bservator hotogra hed b rchilab

effective even when u a wor ed with stone. he tone useu fig. designed in 2000, invokes the idea of grid. In the design, 300mm thin stones were stacked and then about a third of the sections that do not affect the structure were removed . This approach expunges the heaviness of stone and extricates it from the rigid and closed nature of modern architecture and creating 'a multi-layered, semi-transparent space'2

and Bruno Taut's natural sensibility for the local climate and atmosphere5 Kuma intends to establish "environmental architecture" 6 which allows environmental aspects such as sunlight, air, water, and shadows to permeate architecture.

Brian Massumi suggests that space is characterised by porous rather than closed boundaries7. u a enhances these intangible ualities of aterials through the "porousness" 8 of the louvres and partitions in his design. hrough these ualities architecture brea s down or crushes to a granular level known as "particalising" . In Great (Bamboo) Wall, supported by the interaction between bamboo louvres and water, water acts as a receiver of the light which penetrates through gaps in the louvres, with the uniform ba boo artition acting as ualification of light the granular aterial becomes the protagonist of the space through the multiple manipulations of light and shadows fig. . his variabilit and un redictabilit brings architecture and nature closer, triggering a "constant flux" between the exterior and interior spaces, that is, the external environment contracts inwards while the internal e ands towards the infnite e ternal .

This approach affirms that space configuration provides a "co-extensive and dynamic [relation] that produces subjects and objects"3 to integrate architecture with its e ternal environ ent. onse uentl the focus of spatial hierarchy is not architectural form but rather to premeditate a dominant feature of a refined strategy for realising the concept of 'Antiobject'.

Furthermore, the property of material is also a powerful means of realising the concept of 'Anti-object'. Kuma is known for emphasising "connections and encounters" with the environment. Inspired by Antonin Raymond

1　Kuma, Small Architecture, 33-60.

2 Kuma, Small Architecture, 33-60.

3 Suzie Attiwill, "Practices of interiorization –an inter-story," in Meanings of Designed Spaces, ed. Tiiu Vaikla-Poldma (New York: Fairchild Books, 2013), 180.

4 Pulvers, "Architect Kuma Kengo:'a product of place'," 3.

5 Lainez and Verdejo, "The Japanese experience of environmental architecture," 40.

6 Ibid, 40.

7 Amanda Yates, "Oceanic Spaces of Flow," in Architecture in the Spaces of Flow, eds Andrew Ballantyne and Christopher Smith, (New York: Routledge, 2012), 63.

8 Pulvers, "Architect Kuma Kengo:'a product of place'," 4.

9 Weiner, "Architecture as such," 248.

10 Fu, "Research on the Architectural Design Method of Green Materials Related to Teahouse Space," 4.

11 Yates, "Oceanic Spaces of Flow," 69.

12 Attiwill, "Practices of interiorization –an inter-story," 179.

13 Pulvers, "Architect Kuma Kengo:'a product of place'," 7.

14 Kuma, Anti-object, 136.

15 Pulvers, "Architect Kuma Kengo:'a product of place'," 4.

16　Baek, "Between Material Sensuousness and Thingness," 4.

17 Langevin, "Reyner Banham," 1.

18 Baek, "Between Material Sensuousness and Thingness," 5.

19 Baek, "Between Material Sensuousness and Thingness," 1.

20 Lainez and Verdejo, "The Japanese experience of environmental architecture," 1.

21 Kwon, "One Place after Another," 1.

22 Langevin, "Reyner Banham," 1.

23 Weiner, "Architecture as such," 250.

24 Ibid.

By leveraging this 'randomness' of materials from nature, architecture is no longer a closed entity but changes with the character of the environment and expands further into the ambient space .

(Bamboo) Wall. This essay has provided a summarisation of the theoretical basis of 'Anti-object', which Kuma demonstrates is the 'opposite' of modernism's emphasis on form and volume, employing architecture as an intermediary to link nature with mankind . Then, the essay has discussed the specific details of the 'Anti-object' concept, illustrating how the Great (Bamboo) Wall blends with nature in the aspects of site context, spatial organisation, and material properties. Finally, it has elaborated Kuma's emphasis on the environment and spatial relationship in Japanese architectural disci line and his reliance on the intangible ualities of aterials. hese s ecifc anal tical as ects of the anti ob ect conce t was generated from related works by Kengo Kuma and a number of scholars of the interaction between architecture and nature. These include Bruno Taut and Antonin Raymond's 'eco-architecture' inspired by Japanese architectural proportions and principles 20 iwon wno s ite ecificit consciousness and e ner anha s ursuit of invisible ualities22 .

Rather than creating architecture, Kuma is pursuing an experience, and "a way of conversing intelligently with the environment"

As Kuma writes:

"I effectively transformed and relativised the architecture, creating a condition as ambiguous and variable as that of drifting particles; that is, I 'particlised' the architecture."

This 'Anti-object' focus on the connection between consciousness and matter does escape the excessive emphasis on formal aesthetics . But is this a departure from the essence of architecture to the point of metaphysics? As Jin Beak says, it is the thing itself that is closer to the person than all sensations Does the excessive pursuit of material ro erties and heno enal ualities in de ob ect architecture do inates the whole? Amplifying the consciousness of materials and the importance of the senses without abandoning the essence of architecture as a medium of connection between man and nature is perhaps the inner impetus of the 'Anti-object' concept of architecture.

In conclusion, this study has explored the dominance of the 'Anti-object' concept in Kuma's architectural style, conspicuously displayed in Great

Insights gained in this research are valuable, but nonetheless recognised limitations. In terms of methodology, the study largely focuses on the feasibility of 'Anti-object' concept in Kuma's work, which has a geographical advantage in terms of access to the surrounding, but it may not be easy to blend buildings in urban areas with the local context. Nevertheless, W.G. Clark, a professor of Architecture at the University of Virginia, stated that architecture seeks to minimise damage to the landscape and replace absents by making amends23.

"Architecture, whether as town or building, is the reconciliation of ourselves with the natural land"

hotogra hed b

Figure 7. Interaction between water surface and bamboo grid in reat a boo all. hotogra hed b atoshi sa aw

igure tone useu hotogra hed b itsu asa Fujitsuka

igure ight and shadow effects in reat a boo all. hotogra hed b atoshi sa aw