The Weave Ụlọ Agụmakwụkwọ by Yuchen Qiu is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 Ihe Nrite A' Design Award nke Bronz in Nhazi Ụlọ Owu, Ụlọ na Ihe Owuwu Competition Category.

BronzỤlọ Owu· 2026

The Weave Ụlọ Agụmakwụkwọ

by Yuchen Qiu

Client: Studio Liminal

Ihe Nrite A' Design Award nke Bronz Winner in Ụlọ Owu Category

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The Design

About The Weave Ụlọ Agụmakwụkwọ

The Weave bụ ụlọ agụmakwụkwọ e mepụtara site na iji nka megharịa ụlọ akwụkwọ ọha nke e ji nkume rụọ n'ụdị H na New York City, USA. E wepụrụ ihe njikọ dị n'etiti ma jiri atrium e ji osisi buru ibu na enyo iron dị ala rụọ dochie ya, nke na-emepụta ebe mmụta a na-ekekọrịta. A haziri mmụta dịka usoro nkuzi, omume, na mkparịta ụka ma ọ bụ ntụgharị uche. Ebe a na-ekekọrịta ahụ na-ejikọta ụzọ ndị a site na njegharị a na-ahụ anya, akụkụ ọmụmụ ihe, na steepụ nzukọ. Ìhè ehihie na nghọta doro anya na-enyere ojiji kwa ụbọchị aka. Ijigharị ọkpụkpụ ụlọ nkume ahụ na iji osisi arụ ụlọ na-ebelata carbon dị n'ime ihe na mkpofu ihe owuwu.

The Recognition

About the Ihe Nrite A' Design Award nke Bronz

The Weave Ụlọ Agụmakwụkwọ meriri A' Design Award nke Bronz, nnabata dị oke ugwu e nyere design ndị pụtara ìhè nke a ma ama maka nzụlite ihe, ọgụgụ isi na nghọta. Ndị meriri na Bronz bụ ihe e mere nke ndị nwere nka nke ukwuu ma dị mma n'imepụta nke na-egosi ahụmahụ buru ibu, echiche na ọgụgụ isi nke ndị designer ha. A na-atụ anya na The Weave Ụlọ Agụmakwụkwọ ga-abụ ihe a na-asọpụrụ nke ukwuu, a na-eto na a hụrụ n'anya, nke dị oke ọrụ ma dị ọhụrụ. Design a meriri A' Design Award nke Bronz na-agụnye ụzọ kacha mma n'ime nka, sayensị, design na teknụzụ, ma dị mma nke ukwuu maka nlebara anya ya n'obere ihe. The Weave Ụlọ Agụmakwụkwọ na-emezu mkpa nke ọma, na-emetụ ọchịchọ aka, na-adọrọ mmetụta obi ma na-adọta ọchịchọ ịmara.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

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

Unique Properties: Adaptive reuse of a New York City H-plan masonry public school. The central connector is removed and replaced with a mass timber and low iron glass atrium that organizes the School of Methodology, where learning cycles through instruction, practice, and discussion or reflection. The new commons weaves these modes into a visible shared heart, increasing daylight, orientation, and flexible study and gathering space while reuse and timber reduce embodied carbon and construction waste.
Dimensions & Packaging: Selective demolition of the existing connector enables a prefabricated mass-timber (GLT/CLT) frame inserted within the retained masonry shell. New low-iron curtain wall integrates with timber nodes. Assembly is conceived as a dry, bolted system for fast erection and disassembly. Reuse of the existing structure and timber construction reduce embodied carbon and site waste.
Tags: Adaptive Reuse, Educational Architecture, Mass Timber, Low-Carbon Design, Daylighting, Learning Commons, Embodied Carbon, Passive Strategies, Glass Atrium, Healthy Materials
Production Technology: The intervention is conceived as a prefabricated mass timber structure integrated with the retained masonry building. Glulam columns and beams support CLT floor and roof panels, connected with bolted steel plates for dry assembly. A low iron insulated glass facade ties the new atrium to the existing wings. Reusing the shell and using timber reduces embodied carbon, site waste, and disruption.
Design Challenge: The key challenge was inserting a contemporary commons into a heavy masonry H-plan while keeping the original building legible and improving sustainability. The proposal had to balance selective demolition, structural feasibility, and code-driven circulation with daylight, thermal comfort, and long-term adaptability. Achieving a light, transparent intervention without increasing energy demand required careful sectional iteration.
Research: Research examined how an H-plan school can support learning through instruction, practice, and reflection while improving environmental performance through reuse. Methods included precedent study, movement/adjacency diagrams, daylight and visibility mapping, and iterative sectional/structural studies. The resulting strategy replaces the central connector with a mass-timber and glass commons that increases shared space, legibility, and low-energy flexibility.
Inspiration: The project was motivated by two goals: strengthen the learning cycle of instruction, practice, and reflection, and extend the life of a durable public school building through reuse. Typical H-plan schools separate activities into wings with weak shared space. A transparent mass timber commons in the former connector creates a social and academic heart, improves daylight and comfort, and supports long term adaptability with lower environmental impact.
Project Duration: New York City, USA. Adaptive reuse proposal for an existing H-plan public school building, emphasizing reuse of the masonry shell and a low-carbon mass-timber intervention.
Operation Flow: The school is organized around three learning modes, instruction, practice, and discussion or reflection, connected by a shared atrium. Daily circulation becomes a learning loop with study balconies, library niches, and informal steps for gathering. Transparent edges support supervision and collaboration, while flexible furniture allows spaces to shift from quiet study to group discussion and exhibitions. Daylight and passive visibility reduce reliance on artificial lighting and support a healthy, low energy environment.