Utopia Taigh-Còmhnaidh by Fei Zhao is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2023 Duais Airgid A' Design Award in Dealbhadh Àiteachan Taobh a-staigh agus Taisbeanaidh Competition Category.

AirgeadTaobh a-staigh· 2023

Utopia Taigh-Còmhnaidh

by Fei Zhao

Client: 323 Studio

Duais Airgid A' Design Award Winner in Taobh a-staigh Category

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Colors

The Design

About Utopia Taigh-Còmhnaidh

Is e an solas nàdarra radiant stòr cruth an àite seo. B’ e àite organach, in-ghabhalach am faireachdainn a bha luchd-dealbhaidh airson a chruthachadh, agus mar sin rinn iad coimeas cuideachd air mòran de chleachdaidhean àite organach, a’ toirt a-steach suidheachadh nan dealbhan togail. Bha an làr ìseal tùsail a’ gabhail a-steach leth na sgìre gu lèir, ach cha tug na solais a bha ann san làr ìseal ach cead don t-sealbhadair beagan àite gun fheum a dhèanamh a-mach às. Gus ìre cleachdaidh an àite fon talamh gu lèir a leasachadh agus an solais àrdachadh, tha an dealbhaiche ag iarraidh togail ùr-nodha a chruthachadh timcheall an t-solais a-staigh.

The Recognition

About the Duais Airgid A' Design Award

Tha Utopia Taigh-Còmhnaidh air Duais Airgid A' Design Award a bhuannachadh, aithneachadh gu math urramach a bheirear do dhealbhaidhean den chiad ìre, àlainn agus drùidhteach. Tha buannaichean Airgid nan obraichean anabarrach boillsgeach agus gu math cruthachail a nochdas sàr-eòlas, tàlant agus geurchuis an luchd-dealbhaidh. Thathar an dùil gum bi Utopia Taigh-Còmhnaidh na obair mhìorbhaileach, na sàr-eisimpleir a tha gu sònraichte proifeiseanta agus gu domhainn ùr-ghnàthach. Tha an dealbhadh seo a bhuannaich Duais Airgid A' Design Award na innleachd glè fhaicsinneach, ion-mholta a bhrosnaicheas crìochan ealain, saidheans, dealbhaidh agus teicneolais. Tha Utopia Taigh-Còmhnaidh na chruthachadh air a bheil mòran eud, a dhùisgeas miannan, a bheir faireachdainnean math agus a thogas iongnadh is miorbhail.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

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

Unique Properties: As a narrow north-south facing townhouse, the original building has 4 floors, 2 above ground and 2 below (the basement has a height of 5.5m and can be divided into 2 floors with only a small patio to provide light). Facing south as the main direction of light, it relies on a stairwell to connect the various floors and comes with a lift. After observing the site and realizing that no well landscape was around the site, we decided to make an Inward facing construction within it.
Dimensions & Packaging: Indoor area 420 ㎡
Tags: Organic, light and shadow, lighthearted, sculptural, textural contrasts
Production Technology: The curved wall and the laminated cast-in-place revolving staircase were a very big challenge for this project in terms of landing. First of all, the curved wall is an irregular shape, and the boundary of each floor has different positioning dimensions. In order to keep the errors to a minimum, the builder used ropes to locate the 2 layers connected to the basement at multiple points while positioning according to the drawings, just to ensure the coherence of the curved walls.
For the construction drawings, we refer to the positioning method of Toyo Ito’s construction drawings, the contour grid positioning method.
Design Challenge: Guiding the constructor to land our project, and connecting with the structure and electromechanical team, both are hard nuts for us to crack. There are many first attempts for us, also for our constructor.
Research: We focus on the impact of light on the residential environment, taking sunlight as a case study, by observation of the duration and direction of sunlight at the winter and summer solstices.
Inspiration: The radiant natural light is the source of the form of this space. An organic, inclusive space was the feeling we wanted to create, so we also compared a lot of organic space practices, including the positioning of the construction drawings.
Project Duration: The project started on October 17th 2020 and finished on August 1st 2021 in Zhengzhou, China.
Operation Flow: In terms of functional distribution, we clearly divide the functional areas of each floor, which are both independent and well-connected.
The 1st floor and the 2nd floor underground are the main floors for daily access, serving as public spaces, while the relatively independent 2nd floor serves as residential spaces. Owners also have the need for daily gatherings, so we try to make each functional area larger.The staircase has been redesigned to provide a more comfortable connection of traffic flow between the functional areas on each level.
Patents: Design copyright: 323studio
Team Members: Designer: Ran Chen
Image Credits: Photographic institutions：WMstudio