Volcano Visitor Center 遊客中心 by Haisheng Xu

Volcano Visitor Center 遊客中心 by Haisheng Xu is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 A' Design Award 銅獎 in 建築、樓宇及結構設計 Competition Category.

銅建築· 2026

Volcano Visitor Center 遊客中心

by Haisheng Xu

Client: Studio 0

A' Design Award 銅獎 Winner in 建築 Category

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Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #182286

View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

Colors

The Design

About Volcano Visitor Center 遊客中心

火山遊客中心係位於冰島嘅一座遊客中心，展示有關冰島火山嘅地質、歷史同文化資訊。建築物佔地7,300平方呎，嵌入火山地形之中，將地下空間同雕塑感嘅屋頂景觀連成一體。材料選擇簡約，由混凝土、金屬同玻璃組成，綠化屋頂設計用嚟支持本地植物生長。參數化設計工具塑造出彎曲嘅形態，同時保持理性嘅幾何結構。動線引導遊客體驗地平線、大地同大自然。

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award 銅獎

Volcano Visitor Center 遊客中心是 A' Design Award 銅獎得主，這是授予以創造力、獨創性和敏銳見長的傑出設計的極具聲望的認可。銅獎得主是技藝嫻熟、創意驚人的作品，印證了其設計師豐富的經驗、想像力與機智。預計Volcano Visitor Center 遊客中心將成為一件備受推崇、令人欽佩且被珍愛的物品，兼具顯著的專業性與創新性。這件贏得 A' Design Award 銅獎的設計融入藝術、科學、設計和技術領域的最佳實踐，並因注重細節而出類拔萃。Volcano Visitor Center 遊客中心出色地滿足需求，觸動渴望，迷住情感，並吸引好奇心。

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