During the nationwide “talent war” around 2020, Foshan achieved remarkable results, ranking fifth in population growth across China. To attract and retain talent, the city initiated extensive new construction and upgrades of supporting facilities, including landmark developments that rival those of first-tier cities. As one of Foshan’s most central urban areas and a pioneer in urban development, Guicheng Street has implemented a series of urban renewal plans. These include the construction and upgrading of numerous schools and educational facilities to address the educational needs of young families. Among these key projects is the Nanhaiguicheng Jingui High School (tentative name), designed by the Vertical Beam Society.
The site, characterized by a layered composition of order and diversity, lies adjacent to main urban roads on both sides and connects to Yingyue Lake in central Guicheng, offering high visibility within the city. The campus is designed to accommodate 3,000 teachers and students, including teaching and living spaces, administrative offices, auditoriums, sports halls, and other facilities, covering approximately 90,000 square meters. This results in a relatively high-density complex.
From an urban design perspective, the goal was to create a cohesive, rigorous layout that makes efficient use of land, ensuring every space has logical scale, orientation, and purpose rather than a purely conceptual arrangement. The outcome is a building complex reminiscent of a palace, reinforced by continuous colonnades and uniform window designs. This classic architectural order imparts a serious, dignified first impression to visitors.
Behind the colonnades, however, lies a continuous, free-flowing landscape and multi-dimensional public spaces. Layered beneath the classical facade, these reveal vibrant activities and dynamic expressions that invite exploration.
For the primary users—the middle school students—the campus serves as a vital living environment that shapes their spatial and aesthetic perceptions. The design emphasizes openness; although the architectural complex is arranged in a square layout, public spaces flow seamlessly within it. An elevated level forms a continuous landscape where students can freely run and play.
Ascending the stairs, students can access scattered aerial platforms that offer diverse vantage points and points of interest in all directions.
The design also embraces a sense of mystery, reflecting the imaginative nature of teenagers. This is achieved through unexpected juxtapositions of everyday architectural elements: towering halls contrasted with intimate small platforms, open courtyards paired with flat, elevated layers, and a bold mix of pure white and vibrant orange colors. These elements create dramatic visual effects and encourage exploration of the unknown.
Underneath this sense of freedom and creativity lies a clear spatial logic. Open public spaces emphasize axes and directional flow. Seemingly casual elevation changes align perfectly with sightlines, while a flying bridge connecting teaching buildings follows the most direct functional path.
Though the design embraces bold colors and imaginative elements, the overall user experience remains refined, focused, and functional.
Our regional green and energy-saving strategy, applied from construction through long-term operation, remains focused on sustainability, economy, and comfort. Situated in Foshan’s hot summer climate, the design incorporates elevated building floors, large shaded grey spaces, and airflow guidance to maximize natural cooling and ventilation.
The campus also features a fully connected slow-moving circulation system, ensuring comfortable access to all rooms even during adverse weather.
In the gymnasium’s large spaces, we adopted an open climate boundary design. Using only high-level side window exhaust fans and facade airflow guide plates, we achieve comfortable temperature control, significantly reducing air conditioning costs.
The facade baffles have been carefully designed to keep interiors dry during heavy summer rainstorms. Their layered angles also provide soft, natural outdoor light for teachers and students during classes.
To bring soft natural light into deep spaces such as swimming pools and dining halls, skylight designs were incorporated, reducing reliance on artificial lighting. The skylight in the shallow pool area of the swimming pool fully replaces artificial lighting, giving the space an artistic ambiance.
For the landscape design, a “decentralized” flow layout was adopted, using scattered grass slopes to bring greenery into every corner of the campus. This is complemented by water features, pedestrian roof gardens, and other elements to soften building boundaries and improve the local microclimate.
For large sports venues, the design embraces natural carving aesthetics by selecting mechanical-appropriate structures and fully exposing them. This approach reduces decoration costs while showcasing the rational structural features.
Whether it’s the continuous plain concrete arches in the swimming pool or the X-shaped columns and folded roofs in the sports hall, the spaces evoke a sense of primal strength and simple rhythmic beauty.
Project Drawings
△ Project Sketch
△ Project Sketch
△ General Layout Plan
△ Elevation Drawing
△ Elevation Drawing
△ Section Diagram
△ Section Diagram
△ Detailed Drawing
△ Detailed Drawing
△ Analysis Chart
△ Analysis Chart
△ Analysis Chart
△ Analysis Chart
Project Information
Architect: Vertical Beam Society Architecture
Area: 83,485 m²
Project Year: 2022
Photographer: Wu Siming
Lead Architects: Zhu Zhiyuan, Song Gang, Zhong Guanqiu
Project Leader: Lin Hairui
Vertical Beam Society Group B: Huang Wenxuan, Xiao Wenjing, Li Peijia, Chen Xiaoyin, Deng Zhanchong, Lin Qiting
Indoor & Landscape Design: Luo Zi’an
Interior Design: Li Jiaqi, Huang Zhencheng, Zhou Chunchun
Landscape Design: Ye Die, Huang Danyi
Guide Design: Mo Shifeng, Jian Qiuyi
Construction Drawing Design: Foshan Lingnan Architectural Design Consulting Co., Ltd
Principal: Guicheng Street, Nanhai District, Foshan City; Guicheng Investment and Development Company, Nanhai District, Foshan City
Location: Foshan
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