Volcano Visitor Center Isikhungo Sezivakashi by Haisheng Xu

Volcano Visitor Center Isikhungo Sezivakashi by Haisheng Xu is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 Umklomelo Webhulonzi we-A' Design Award in Ukudizayina Ezokwakha, Izakhiwo Nezinhlaka Competition Category.

IbhulonziEzokwakha· 2026

Volcano Visitor Center Isikhungo Sezivakashi

by Haisheng Xu

Client: Studio 0

Umklomelo Webhulonzi we-A' Design Award Winner in Ezokwakha Category

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Verified Award Winner

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Colors

The Design

About Volcano Visitor Center Isikhungo Sezivakashi

I-Volcano Visitor Center yisikhungo sezivakashi e-Iceland esethula ulwazi lwezakhiwo zomhlaba, lomlando, kanye lamasiko mayelana nezintaba-mlilo zase-Iceland. Isakhiwo sihlanganisa amamitha-skwele angu-7,300 futhi sakhelwe phakathi kwendawo yentaba-mlilo, sihlanganisa izikhala ezingaphansi komhlaba nophahla olubaziwe. Izinto zokwakha zilula, zihlanganisa ukhonkolo, insimbi, nengilazi, kanye nophahla oluluhlaza olwakhelwe ukusekela izitshalo zendawo. Amathuluzi okwakha e-parametric abumba isimo esigobile ngesikhathi kugcinwa i-geometry enengqondo. Indlela yokuhamba iholela izivakashi ukuba zizizwele umkhathizwe, umhlaba, kanye nemvelo.

The Recognition

About the Umklomelo Webhulonzi we-A' Design Award

Volcano Visitor Center Isikhungo Sezivakashi iwinile uMklomelo Webhulonzi we-A' Design Award, ukwaziswa okuhloniphekile kakhulu okunikezwa imiklamo ephawulekayo eyehlukaniswa ukudala, ubuhlakani nobukhali bengqondo. Abawinile beBhulonzi yimisebenzi enobuchule obukhulu nedala ngokumangalisayo eqinisekisa isipiliyoni esibanzi, umcabango nobuhlakani babaklami babo. Volcano Visitor Center Isikhungo Sezivakashi ilindeleke ukuba ibe yinto exatshwa kakhulu, edunyiswayo nethandwayo, enobungcweti obuphawulekayo nezinto ezintsha. Lo mklamo owinile uMklomelo Webhulonzi we-A' Design Award uhlanganisa izindlela ezinhle kakhulu ebuciko, esayensi, ekuklameni nasebuchwepheshe futhi uhamba phambili ngenxa yokunaka kwawo imininingwane. Volcano Visitor Center Isikhungo Sezivakashi iyanelisa izidingo ngokumangalisayo, ithinta izifiso, iheha imizwa futhi ikhanga ukufuna ukwazi.

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