Volcano Visitor Center Ionad Cuairteoirí by Haisheng Xu

Volcano Visitor Center Ionad Cuairteoirí by Haisheng Xu is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 Duais Cré-umha A' Design Award in Dearadh Ailtireachta, Foirgníochta agus Struchtúir Competition Category.

Cré-umhaAiltireacht· 2026

Volcano Visitor Center Ionad Cuairteoirí

by Haisheng Xu

Client: Studio 0

Duais Cré-umha A' Design Award Winner in Ailtireacht Category

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Verified Award Winner

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View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

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The Design

About Volcano Visitor Center Ionad Cuairteoirí

Is ionad cuairteoirí san Íoslainn é Ionad Cuairteoirí an Bholcáin a chuireann eolas geolaíoch, stairiúil agus cultúrtha faoi bholcáin na hÍoslainne i láthair. Clúdaíonn an foirgneamh 7,300 troigh chearnach agus tá sé suite isteach sa tír-raon bolcánach, ag nascadh spásanna faoi thalamh le dreach dín dealbhaithe. Tá an pailéad ábhar simplí, comhdhéanta de choincréit, miotal agus gloine, le díon glas atá deartha chun tacú le plandaí áitiúla. Mhúnlaigh uirlisí deartha paraiméadracha an fhoirm chuartha agus céimseata réasúnach á coinneáil. Treoraíonn an cúrsaíocht cuairteoirí chun taithí a fháil ar an léaslíne, ar an talamh agus ar an dúlra.

The Recognition

About the Duais Cré-umha A' Design Award

Bhuaigh an dearadh Volcano Visitor Center Ionad Cuairteoirí Duais Cré-umha A' Design Award, aitheantas an-ghradamach a bhronntar ar dhearaí sármhaithe a mbíonn cruthaitheacht, aireagacht agus géarchúis mar shaintréithe acu. Is déantúsáin ghlic agus chruthaitheacha go suntasach iad buaiteoirí Cré-umha a dhearbhaíonn taithí fhairsing, samhlaíocht agus acmhainneacht a ndearthóirí. Táthar ag súil go mbeidh an dearadh Volcano Visitor Center Ionad Cuairteoirí ina rud a bhfuil an-mheas air, a n-ardaítear agus a ghráitear, atá thar a bheith gairmiúil agus nuálach. Ionchorpraíonn an dearadh seo a bhuaigh Duais Cré-umha A' Design Award na cleachtais is fearr san ealaín, san eolaíocht, sa dearadh agus sa teicneolaíocht, agus tá sé sármhaith as a aird ar mhionsonraí. Sásaíonn an dearadh Volcano Visitor Center Ionad Cuairteoirí riachtanais go hálainn, bainíonn sé le mianta, cuireann sé draíocht ar mhothúcháin agus tarraingíonn sé fiosracht.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Embedded within the volcanic terrain, the project dissolves the boundary between building and landscape, offering a continuous journey of light, earth, and horizon. By uniting subterranean shelter with sculpted roofscape, it transforms architecture into an environmental mediator that preserves the site while intensifying experience, inviting visitors to inhabit nature not as observers, but as participants in its elemental presence.
Dimensions & Packaging: 7,300 square feet.
Tags: Sustainability, Landscape Architecture, Mobius,Parametric, Curvilinear
Production Technology: The building is intended to use local materials and minimize its impact on the existing landscape. The material palette is kept simple, consisting of concrete, metal, and glass, with a green roof designed to support local plants. Parametric design tools were used to create a dynamic form responding to the organic landscape while maintaining rational geometry and production control. View and lighting analyses were also used to verify the design outcomes.
Design Challenge: The creative challenge was to create a manmade form that responds to the existing landscape and site language without simply mimicking nature. The design philosophy explores how humans, while adapting to nature, interpret and reshape the surrounding environment to achieve a new balance that can sustain human life in a sustainable and long-lasting way.
Research: The research focused on two main aspects. The first examined how volcanic activities have shaped Iceland’s landscape and human activities. It was particularly inspiring to understand how volcanoes and the hidden underground world provide fertile soil and geothermal heat for life, while many human activities and habitats are partially or fully embedded underground. The second aspect studied the geometries and forms generated by volcanic activities.
Inspiration: Iceland’s settlement history is shaped by volcanic forces and the landscapes and energy they generate. The vast horizontal terrain fosters a close relationship between human life and the earth. Inspired by volcanic forms and the mystery of the underground, the design reinforces this connection by integrating surface and subterranean space. It invites visitors to reflect on nature as they experience the expansive horizon.
Project Duration: 2025, Iceland
Operation Flow: The design serves as a tourist center introducing geological, historical, and cultural information about Icelandic volcanoes, showing how volcanic activities have shaped Iceland’s environmental and social landscapes. The concept originates from volcanic terrain, particularly exploring the interface between the ground surface and the underground. Around this interface, the building's circulation guides visitors to experience the horizon, the land, and nature.
Team Members: Haisheng Xu