Zehua Zhang · CLIENT: Zehua Zhang
Time Catalyst is a proposal that adapts a former winery in Valencia for public cultural use. The design retains the existing structure and brick wall while introducing additional openings to improve light, access, and connections between interior and exterior. By removing portions of the roof, the designer creates an internal courtyard that brings daylight and landscape into the building. The interior accommodates studios, exhibitions, and community activities, balancing preservation with selective interventions to allow the building to remain in use.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Time Catalyst transforms a historic Valencia winery into a vibrant cultural center where memory and vitality coexist. Honoring its structural framework, the exterior preserves the original brick texture, while rhythmic openings at the base blur inside and outside. Interior volumes with curved facades echo the exterior, fostering fluidity and continuity, and the site embodies both the heritage and the spirit of the Fallas festival in Valencia, bridging past and future.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Two-story building with overall dimensions of 75 meters in width, 75 meters in depth, and 23 meters in height.
- Tags
- Historic preservation, adaptive reuse, brick facade, structural framework, spatial fluidity, interior-exterior continuity, cultural center, curved volumes, communal space
- Production Technology
- This design balances cultural heritage with contemporary interventions. The original brick facade was restored to preserve its texture, while curved glass panels echo its language. Inside, UHPC ultra thin concrete slabs and steel I beams combine lightness with structural stability. Computer-aided simulations and 3D modeling optimized spatial relationships, integrating old and new elements to create a dynamic, vibrant experience.
- Design Challenge
- The original materials and structure of the historic building were preserved, while selective demolition was carried out. Structural analysis was performed, and the feasibility and adaptability of introducing new building structures and materials were comprehensively evaluated.
- Project Duration
- The project started in June 2025 and was completed in October 2025
- Operation Flow
- This is a renovation and adaptive reuse project for an old winery, preserving its historical character while introducing new vitality, transforming it into a cultural center that provides a space for local residents and artists to connect and express their creativity. The main spaces include creative studios, artist workshops, a performance hall, classrooms, exhibition areas, and a public courtyard.
- Research
- Type of Research: Design-based architectural research on adaptive reuse. Research Objectives: To convert a historic winery into a cultural center while preserving heritage and enhancing social use. Methodology: Analysis of history, structure, and environment, tested through simulations and models. Data Collection and Research Tools Used: Archives, drawings, site photos, 3D modeling, daylight and airflow simulations, and material studies. Results: Informed spatial layouts, openings, and materials. Insights and Impacts: Demonstrated how historic buildings can support contemporary cultural life. Effect in Real Life: Promotes heritage preservation, community interaction, and sustainable design.
- Inspiration
- Time Catalyst is inspired by the dialogue between history and contemporary life. The old winery’s brick walls carry memory, and I aimed to preserve this while introducing new vitality. Valencia’s Fallas festival, with its communal energy and fluidity, inspired the building’s openness and curved interior volumes, blurring inside and outside. The design celebrates cultural heritage while activating the space for modern social and creative life.
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