The activation of rural field public space has always been an important part of rural construction projects. The participation of the designers and students in the rural space experimental project provides another possibility for the issue of rural construction space, focusing on joint participation, ecological construction, sustainable operation, teaching within research, etc.

Chongming, a beautiful island with excellent natural environmental and ecological resources, has unique advantages providing conditions for the development of local tourism and agriculture. Each weekend, tourists from Shanghai and its surrounding cities drive to Chongming, with special holidays making the trips more popular and abundant. In rural field, in addition to the beautiful farmland, people's activities have become a different kind of rural landscape. How space can activate behaviors and become a social generator is the main focus of this space experiment.

In general, there are two characteristics of people's behaviors in rural field: one is the extensibility of horizontal plane, and the other is no obvious aggregation in space. This design makes a breakthrough among the two points, with the program transitioning from horizontal to be vertically organized, with a highlighted spatial enclosure.

Furthermore, the designers introduced the field theory. Interactions between family members or strangers are realized by the space enticing people to break boundaries. People spend their time resting, talking, and transiting around this installation. They finally build up a sense of intimacy and connection by traveling from one field to another，experiencing it from a comfortable social distance to a tense social distance.

During the process of more than two weeks, the whole construction combines research and participation. With the help and guidance of  professional workers，students were able to experience the project from the start to its completion.

Technical sheet

Type Installation,  Exterior
Status Commission, Built
Location Shanghai, China
Year 2020
Client RAC studio

Design team Lifeng Lin(Finn Lam), Jiawei Lyu
Collaborators Racstudio team
Photo credit Songkai LIU, Jiawei Lyu,Lifeng Lin(Finn Lam)

About LIN Architecture 

LIN architecture is a cutting-edge design and research institution in Asia, dedicated to space research, design, and education. The creative field of the studio covers architecture, urban, landscape, interior, plane, interactive technology, cultural communication, design education, and virtual construction. Creative media includes publication, exhibition, video, and other media arts.

Core members of the team hail from some of the world's top universities, including Harvard University, University of Pennsylvania, University of London, etc. The members' works have been featured in 2020 Beijing International Design Week, 2018 Venice Biennale, 2018 Milan Design Week Oriental Exhibition, 2019 Barcelona Design Week, 2019 St. Petersburg Design week, 2019 Shenzhen-Hong Kong Bi-City Biennale of Urban Architecture (Shenzhen), 2019 Shanghai Urban Space Art Season-Encounter, 2019 Modern Shanghai Fashion Home Furnishing Exhibition, and other major exhibitions.