Reparative Construction

What are the key components of affective atmosphere in Xiaopu Village?
How to design architecture with an atmospheric sensibility?After two decades of organic growth, Xiaopu Artist Village, located on the urban fringe of Beijing, has become the largest artists’ colony in China. In 2020, the newest planning proposal for the art district came out in response to the relocation of Beijing’s sub-center. The scheme projected more than fifty percent of the built fabric to be demolished for the construction of new residential buildings, cultural centers, and international galleries. While it provided an efficient agenda for the cultural economy, the planning scheme lacks care for existing artistic networks and everyday social exchanges on-site and risks draining out a productive art scene through gentrification.

This design research investigates the architectural means to preserve the artists’ space of living and making in the government-led urbanization process. In the end, the design research project proposes a co-living community for young artists in the context of art development in Xiaopu Village, Beijing. The artists in residence take ownership of the space by reconfiguring three layers of moving surfaces - sliding screens, folding doors, and hanging curtains. These shifting layers blur the boundaries between social and studio space, private and shared space, and interior and exterior space. The site unfolds as one navigates through narrow streets adorned with moments of discovery such as open studios, exhibitions, art sales, and more.