Rural Academy

The project is located in Hejiayan Village, Youyang County, Chongqing, which is a distinctive Tujia village in Chongqing. The academy that we designed and renovated is situated within the village. The original building has a footprint of 100 square meters and is divided into two floors, currently used by villagers for storing miscellaneous items. Previously, this building served as a village collective granary, a product of China's land reform in the 1950s. It bears witness to that historical period and carries the memories of our older generation. Based on this, we maximized the retention of the building's original appearance in our design, only demolishing the rammed earth and gravel wall on the east side, and expanding the building with a steel structure and glass to ensure the completeness of internal functions. At the same time, this significantly improved the indoor lighting and allowed the external environment to have a good dialogue with the indoor space. On the first floor of the academy, we created a space for villager activities, such as playing chess and tasting tea, as well as a schoolroom where teachers can hold regular lectures. On the second floor, we set up a reading room to facilitate villagers to read and study in their spare time. We increased the original building height and expanded to create a third floor, mainly used for villagers to practice calligraphy and for celebrities to inscribe when they visit. Throughout the renovation process, we exercised restraint, reused old materials, and allowed that history and memories to continue and shine again.