Reminiscent of Roman-style homes with an inner garden and an impluvium (or a lake for collecting rainwater), the Bamboo Craft Village by Archi-Union is located in Daoming Country in the Sichuan Province, more than 50 kilometers away from the urban area. Set in absolute wilderness, the building is surrounded entirely by greenery, and is shaped like a figure 8, or the infinity sign depending on how you’re looking at it. This serpentine shape gives it two distinct open areas on the inside that are used to create a mini garden and a lake respectively.
Designer: Archi-Union Architects
The Bamboo Craft Village demonstrates a new definition of how architecture can interact with tradition. Located away from the hustle and bustle of the city, it provides a means for re-examining the dichotomy between the village and the city, while helping advance the village industry too, by preserving age-old bamboo construction and weaving traditions, while also introducing the village to advanced fabrication techniques using robotics, etc.
Continuity plays a strong theme here. Aside from helping reinforce and continue erstwhile dying bamboo traditions, the building’s design reinforces continuity too with its infinity-shaped design that has a single continuous corridor inside as well as outside. From up above, the roof weaves into itself by overlapping itself to create a continuous form, and lights on the inside help guide the eye with their linear shapes too.
The structure’s construction was one-of-a-kind too, relying on prefabrication – a technique rather uncommon in rural areas. Making use of prefabrication allowed for the architecture, interior and landscape to be completed in a stunningly short span of just 52 days.
