change architects reference worms digging into earth for OCT Chaohu Cultural Centre

How would a building seem, if landscape design meets flowing facades?

A close enough answer emerges out of a precise juncture of nature and urban settlement, the ultra-sinuous OCT Chaohu Natural and Cultural Centre, conceived by change architects is a man-made landscape, a structure replete with a grass-topped roof and earth-coloured surfaces that forgoes straight lines or strict geometries.

Referencing the mountains of China’s Anhui province, the cultural centre is described by the Chinese studio as a "carrier of natural elements, a moment of environmental reformation." The organic, low-lying cultural building is located at the foot of a site that lies between the natural mountains and the city, stretching for tens of kilometres from northeast to southwest on the north side of Chaohu city in China.

“This project could be considered a critical point of the local natural environment and urban domestic life. The purpose of the architecture is to demonstrate the indigenous cultural heritage while being on the fence for the future life of domestic entertainment in the city,” the Chinese architects share.

change architects relay that the architectural concept for the animated building is derived from the idea and aesthetic of naturally occurring forms—“we wondered how to make the background of the mountain, the earth's lush vegetation, its rich geological context and more, to form the body of the building itself, and through its formation, become a carrier to channel the light and shadow, rain and snow, air, water, and other discerning natural elements. To put it simply, the concept is nature itself.”

For the Chinese studio, architecture is no longer just the scale and space required for human activities, but more importantly, a catalyst and medium to express nature and its ensuing elements, letting humans seep in nature’s force, shaping their behaviour. Commissioned by the OCT East China Group, OCT Hefei Huanchao cultural and Tourism Real Estate Development Co., Ltd., the cultural centre provides a community hub and restaurant for the Bantung Hot Spring Town resort, part of a new economic development zone, north of the Chaohu city.

Learning from the natural landscape

Realised over three years, the OCT Chaohu Natural and Cultural Centre learns from the natural landscape, its volume articulated as a projection of the mountain’s external shape, as well as the contours of the earth. On this building block, change architects proceeded to carry out the paths carved by worms tunnelling into the earth—‘a wiggly worm in the ground’— wormholes carving into the building’s skin and insides to create its tangible boundaries, like a natural phenomenon, akin to worms crawling and creating cavities in the ground. The biomimetic architecture is deliberate, with wormholes shaped like worms drilling out of the building’s surface, in turn, creating natural nodes that form large, organic openings and viewing platforms of the structure, permitting guests to witness the surrounding landscape through them.

These holes and curved apertures puncture the roof to create skylights, bringing natural light into the open courtyards underneath. Sunken spaces akin to amphitheatre settings become informal areas for performances. These are accompanied by sinuous walkways that mimic its dynamic, flowing exterior, becoming pathways to access the restaurant’s entrance, where visitors can move towards the expansive lounge or towards the dining room.

A fully-glazed wall inside the restaurant design boasts of views of the lake outside. Illuminated at night, the OCT Chaohu Natural and Cultural Centre is reflected resplendent in the adjacent waterbody, forming a picture-perfect moment where the “mountains, water and buildings meet," share the design team. A glass viewing box that is inserted into the undulating outline of the landmark architecture is the only element that features straight lines, a complete departure from the rest of the project.

The 1,500 sqm building takes in its surrounding topography by building a relationship with the landscape, where the Chinese architecture embodies the strength, spaciousness, and experience of being within the undulant forms of nature, more specifically, natural caves taken over by wild vegetation. This is most apparent in the concrete curving profile of the building which is crowned with a green roof, offering an "authentic spatial effect, not only focusing on the whole monolith, while incorporating the localisation, physical landform and peripheral regions,” the Chinese studio shares.

change architects also contemplated which systems of construction and local construction techniques (low or high tech) seemed more suitable to realise the contemporary architecture. The cultural centre was thus bestowed a sturdy steel structure to ensure speed and controllability of its construction and completion. “On the top and bottom of the structure layer, the roof in-situ pouring and GRC hanging board are combined respectively,” they share.

For the roof, concrete was poured on its surface, while the inner cavity was made of GRC hanging board as the core layers for the contextual architecture. After the construction of the foundation level was completed, change architects used two methods of planting the roof and spraying lightweight concrete to complete the shaping of the upper and lower veneer layers.

“Compared with the curtain wall system, these two methods are both malleable finishes, and their inherent characteristics made it a better match with the streamlined shape of the landmark building, and greatly reduced the tolerance for accuracy,” they share.

Owing to the massive difference in the slope rate of the building’s roof, the concrete architecture adopts a variety of anti-skid treatment strategies. On gentle slopes, large mesh anti-skid partitions were used, while on steeper slopes, dense hole partitions were employed. 50mm of formula soil in the corresponding anti-skid partitions of different densities were filled to ensure that the roof vegetation could survive for a longer period.

Project Details

Name: OCT Chaohu Natural and Cultural Centre
Area: 1,500 sqm
Year of completion: 2022
Client: OCT East China Group, OCT Hefei Huanchao cultural and Tourism Real Estate Development Co., Ltd.
Architect: change architects
Design team: Jiang Qiu, Zhou Yangyang, Shi Chen, Li Baona, Hou Xiaomeng, Jin Xiaoli, Bian Keming, Hao Ziting
Local Design Institute: Anhui Architectural Design and Research Institute Co., Ltd.
Landscape Designer: Masters'Architectural Office (M.A.O)
Structural Engineer: Anhui Fuhuang Construction Co., Ltd
Interior Designer: Ipoletz Architectural Consulting Services (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. IFGROUP (Germany)
Architectural Creativity and Design Consultant Architects: Cai Sheng, HAN SONGLI, Yin Wenjun, Hao Xingyu, Qian Jun
Structure Consultant: Shanghai Wilderness Structural Des. Firm Inc.(General Partnership)
Structure Designer: Zhang Yewei
Curtain Wall Consultant: Shanghai Xima Curtain Wall Engineering Consulting Co., Ltd.
Lighting Design Consultant: Jiehan Lighting Design Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
Logo Design Consultant: Beijing Tushi Space Creative Design Co., Ltd.
FF&E Consultant: Shanghai KEYI Architectural Design Co., Ltd. (KOYI)