Pingjiang Wonder Bookstore 书店 by Aico is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2021 A' Design Award 银奖 in 建筑与结构设计 Competition Category.

银建筑· 2021

Pingjiang Wonder Bookstore 书店

by Aico

Client: Yango Group Co. Ltd

A' Design Award 银奖 Winner in 建筑 Category

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The Design

About Pingjiang Wonder Bookstore 书店

平江奇迹书店是位于中国苏州的一家书店，总建筑面积1800平方米。建筑形似一块经过精细切割的水晶，在水平方向上分为两部分。上半部分呈多面棱切造型，各切面立面以4至6度的垂直倾角朝天空倾斜。通透的下半部分则以人体尺度设计，更好地融入周边街道环境。5米×1.8米的高反射玻璃幕墙板构成了建筑外部的框架式幕墙。

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award 银奖

Pingjiang Wonder Bookstore 书店是 A' Design Award 银奖得主，这是授予顶级、华美而令人印象深刻的设计的极为崇高的认可。银奖得主是极其卓越、极具创造力的作品，展现出其设计师杰出的专业技能、才华与敏锐。预计Pingjiang Wonder Bookstore 书店将成为一件出色的典范之作，兼具非凡的专业性与深刻的创新性。这件赢得 A' Design Award 银奖的设计是一项备受瞩目、令人钦佩的发明，造福并拓展艺术、科学、设计和技术的边界。Pingjiang Wonder Bookstore 书店是一件令人羡慕的创作，它唤起渴望，带来积极的情感，并激发惊叹与赞叹。

Behind the Design

Press Kit

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

Unique Properties: As the first building amid the city complex turned from old town to the city gateway, we shaped it as a delicately-cut crystal. Dividing the building horizontally into 2 parts, we faceted the upper part and battered the sliced facades by a vertical angle of 4-6 degrees towards the sky as a pioneer, while we fit the transparent lower part into the human scale for better integration into the culturally unique streets. Thus, both parts can naturally merge into the different development stages.
Dimensions & Packaging: Gross Built Area: 1800 Square Meters
Tags: Bookstore, Suzhou, Glass Curtain Wall, Delicately-Cut Crystal, Speculations in a Tiny Space, Reflection, Urban Revival, City Pioneer
Production Technology: The high-reflective glass panels with a dimension of 5m x 1.8m were adopted to compose the external framed curtain wall.
Design Challenge: Challenges arose during the construction of specially designed facade curtain wall, for instance, the stress problem of the apexes that increases the fragility of the glass, and the flattening of glass panels sized 5m x 1.8m, which is larger than normal size. After systematic research and close collaboration, the unique diamond-like exterior took shape eventually.
Research: According to the law of THE NEGATION OF NEGATION in Science of Logic by Hegel, the result of self-sublation is never nothing but is characterized by new contents and forms. Such dialectic speculation forms the basic design logic for the building. To hide it into 500,000 square meter city complex, or to highlight its independent characteristics within the tiny 1800 square meters? An icy cluster of metal or a soothing piece of jade? Rounds of negations led us to the design eventually.
Inspiration: Rounds of explorations were made to define the facade of the new town pioneer bookstore. The Rose Cut, one of the diamond faceting method in the Renaissance, inspired the combinations of inlaid triangles. The apexes of each triangle glass are tilted in with a specific angle, forming the slight ups and downs on the exterior and reflecting the daily and seasonal variations of the sunlight.
Project Duration: The bookstore located in 777 Liansheng Rd, Gusu Dist., Suzhou, China, which started and completed in 2018.
Operation Flow: As the very first building in the titanic city complex, it is expected to stand out as a trendy experience center in the mess and pioneer in the new town. After the maturation of the entire city complex project, we hope it can remain culturally unique and serve the local community, merging into their daily life.
Team Members: Rudan Ye
Jing Zhang
Hucheng Yuan
Jinshan Chen
Tianyu Jin
Xin Wang
Peng Liu
Guangyuan Zhu
Image Credits: Image #1/#2/#3/#4/#5: Photographer Jianghe Zeng, 2018.