Designed by OPEN Architecture Firm, the Shanghai Qingpu Pinghe Bilingual School campus features a unique building that appears light and airy—like two warm white airbags floating above a transparent glass box on the ground floor. These two “airbags” enclose the wind and rain playground and the swimming pool, while the glass box on the first floor houses the school cafeteria.
Strategically located near the northern city road, the building opens its facilities to the surrounding community during school holidays, offering shared sports amenities for the rapidly developing new city area.
The gymnasium, swimming pool, and cafeteria are the three largest spaces on campus. To avoid overwhelming the campus with this building’s mass, the architect aimed to “lift the heavy as light.”
The soft colors and rounded shapes of the “airbags,” combined with the transparent and bright glass on the first floor and atrium, create a sense of lightness. The subtle patterns on the irregular perforated aluminum panels and the semi-transparent walls made of tension film and sunlight panels further dissolve the building’s weight and volume.
Filled with sunlight, air, and water, this vibrant space energizes the campus and its students.
The larger “airbag” on the east side encloses the Wind and Rain Playground, a multifunctional sports hall designed for basketball, volleyball, badminton, taekwondo, fencing, and more. Nearby, smaller gyms complement the space.
Inside, the space is bright and clean, free of pillars thanks to its wide-span design. Warm bamboo veneer, dark gray impact-resistant walls, and retractable seating line the sides. Sunlight filters through long skylights, reducing the need for artificial lighting during the day and providing ample diffused light for various indoor activities.
The smaller “airbag” on the west side houses the swimming pool, featuring five 25-meter lanes suitable for daily training and small competitions. A skylight above and a double-layer curtain wall system with tension film and sun panels on the north and south facades flood the interior with comfortable natural light.
Large windows at both ends provide panoramic views of the campus and city, emphasizing the pool’s bright and airy “sky pool” character.
Between the two floating airbags, a vertical glass atrium with a skylight illuminates a 12-meter-high staircase, allowing visitors to observe the dynamic activities inside the sports arena.
The cafeteria on the ground floor is a fully transparent glass box offering panoramic views of the campus and various activities, including the outdoor basketball court to the west.
Designed for flexible use, the cafeteria’s arrangement of tables and chairs, low ceilings, and bright lighting also support time-shared use as a learning space.
The building’s distinctive double-layer skin is central to its design. A large-span spatial grid is sandwiched between the inner and outer skins and extends beyond the structure, ensuring a clean and uncluttered interior.
This gives the appearance that the building is floating in midair. The complex mechanical and electrical systems are integrated into the facade for easy inspection and maintenance.
The transparent materials create a misty, lightweight visual effect while allowing effective ventilation, reducing the need for energy-intensive air conditioning typically required in sports facilities.
At night, the exterior stretch film covering the swimming pool glows softly, while the warm yellow light from evening self-study sessions in the cafeteria shines through the glass box like a lantern illuminating a corner of the campus.
This eliminates the need for additional exterior lighting. The steel frame and hidden mechanical and electrical equipment between the double-layer skin are faintly visible through perforated aluminum panels, creating abstract, mysterious, and futuristic patterns that give the building a sense of breathing freely.
Project Drawings
△ Plan View
△ Section Diagram
△ Axonometric Diagram
Project Information
Architectural Design: OPEN Architecture Firm
Area: 5,690 m²
Project Year: 2020
Photographers: Chen Hao, Wu Qingshan, Lei Tantan
Lead Architects: Li Hu, Huang Wenjing
Design Team: Tan Qingjun, Cao Mengxing, Lu Di, Daijiro Nakayama, Zhou Tingting, Zhang Hao, Wang Mengmeng, Chen Xiuyuan, Lin Bihong, Feng Qing, Zhu Tianming, Wei Lunan
Client: Shanghai Tixue Education Technology Co., Ltd
Lighting Consultant: Shanghai Modern Architectural Decoration Environment Design and Research Institute Co., Ltd
Logo Design: Beijing Tianshu Culture and Art Communication Co., Ltd
Collaborative Design Institute: Shanghai Original Design Consulting Co., Ltd
Structural Consultant: Jianyan Technology Co., Ltd
Pool Consultant: Shuifang (Shanghai) Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd
Interior Design: OPEN Architecture
Location: Shanghai, China
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