Project Origin
In 2019, to enhance farmers’ living conditions and fulfill their aspirations for a better life, the Fujian Provincial Department of Housing and Urban Rural Development initiated the concept of building a “new era rural community.” Their goal was to explore possibilities for constructing new Fujian-style residential buildings.
The Department selected 10 sites across Fujian Province, each in a different county, and invited 10 experienced design teams nationwide to contribute designs. This project represents one of those efforts and is the most recently completed.
This project is situated in Wuxi Village, Wufeng Town, Yongchun County, Quanzhou City. The site lies on a hillside with significant elevation changes, featuring forests and ponds atop the mountain, while the village’s original buildings cluster at the base. Land parcels are allocated in a scattered fashion, but the planning and design are unified. Villagers contribute to constructing their homes, with public areas funded by the government.
Purpose and Significance
The project aims to design and build a replicable, scalable new rural community. This includes new rural homes, public service buildings, local landscapes, and outdoor communal spaces.
The Fujian Provincial Department of Housing and Urban Rural Development and the architects aspire for this community to embody the following qualities:
- Respect regional characteristics by dynamically inheriting and evolving traditional dwellings to preserve local memories while meeting modern living needs.
- Rebuild rural family ties and neighborhood relationships based on the culture of filial piety, brotherhood, and community through thoughtful residential and outdoor space layouts and the creation of public communal areas.
- Honor the environment and local culture by utilizing local materials, crafts, vegetation, and species, fostering a human-environment relationship aligned with rural characteristics.
- Explore the coexistence of residential and business functions by designing homes that can later be adapted into commercial uses like homestays, offering villagers additional income opportunities.
- Emphasize collaborative creation, forming a symbiotic partnership among government, architects, builders, and local residents.
- Ensure unified planning and design, strict control over land use, building height, and construction cost per square meter to create affordable, comfortable homes for villagers.
Residential Buildings in Xinxiang Village
Located in Yongchun County, Quanzhou City, Fujian Province, the project features traditional residential styles with strong regional traits. The architecture primarily showcases dark red, white, and blue-gray colors. Buildings display varied roof layers and wavy forms, with exteriors clad in locally sourced dark red bricks and decorated with hollow brick patterns.
The design focuses on dynamically inheriting and innovating these traditional features by carefully controlling roof shapes and color balance, employing facade depth and illusion, and using uniquely shaped walls. This approach preserves historical memory while adapting architectural forms to a more suitable, contemporary scale.
The project emphasizes the use of local materials and traditional craftsmanship. Traditional tiles from Jiaoshan Town and local granite for retaining walls are utilized, reducing transportation emissions and supporting the local building materials industry. Skilled local craftsmen and villagers are engaged, promoting traditional crafts and increasing villagers’ income.
Additionally, the use of prefabricated stairs and floor slabs reduces costs and construction time by minimizing the need for formwork support and removal, marking a valuable innovation in rural housing construction.
Thoughtful Spatial Organization
The new residential buildings are detached houses designed to meet the contemporary family structures and housing needs of farmers. Each home is limited to 120 square meters and capped at three stories.
Spatial layouts incorporate local Minnan living habits, offering exclusive spaces beyond the usual functions. These include tea-drinking areas, ancestral worship rooms on the top floor, agricultural storage spaces, and, where possible, private courtyards for growing vegetables.
Filial piety and brotherly love are deeply embedded in the design of the residences. Besides the ancestral worship room on the top floor, each floor includes family common areas to encourage interaction among siblings. The first floor features a senior living room equipped to support elderly needs, including accessible entry ramps, anti-slip tiles, furniture corner protectors, elder-friendly bathrooms, voice-controlled switches, and bedside call bells—addressing the challenges of an aging rural population.
The project also anticipates industrialization potential. With rural tourism growth and decreasing village populations, many homes are being converted into homestays. Some residences here (at villagers’ request) are designed to serve as both private homes and homestays.
For example, separate outdoor staircases to the second floor allow guests and hosts to move independently without disturbing each other. Additionally, homes with scenic views feature floor-to-ceiling glass to enhance transparency and maximize indoor views.
Community Construction and Landscape Design
Based on rural living patterns, the community includes public facilities that provide services to local residents. A village activity center houses a stage, multifunctional conference room, daily care center, specialty store, and a community public welfare library. This center acts as a hub to rebuild neighborhood relationships and sustain traditional culture.
The community also offers multiple small to medium outdoor public spaces catering to various villagers’ needs. Flowing Water Square hosts weddings and funerals, strengthening community bonds alongside the village center. A children’s playground offers recreation, while a grain drying field supports daily production activities.
The landscape design integrates both rural authenticity and practicality. Efforts are made to preserve large existing trees as key elements of spatial planning. The design extensively uses local materials and vegetation—including stones, native trees, and even vegetables—eschewing an urban park aesthetic. The Houshan River system is incorporated to surround the village with clear water, enhancing the microclimate and vitality of the community.
Co-Creation Mechanism
This project emphasizes collaboration, shared construction, and mutual benefit throughout design, building, and usage phases. Early in design, consultations with local villagers, leaders, and elites helped understand villagers’ real needs. Preliminary plans were presented on-site to gather feedback on the new housing.
During construction, plans are adjusted flexibly based on villagers’ feedback and evolving needs, rather than rigidly following drawings. A joint evaluation system is established, including a “Building Management Council” composed of respected village officials and representatives who oversee the construction process.
An innovative “Four Ones” funding model is adopted to refine project financing: modest government increases, small investments in towns and villages, villagers contributing a share, and bank financing. Public facilities are government-funded, while villagers finance their own homes. Construction costs are capped strictly at 1850 yuan per square meter to keep homes affordable and promotable.
Conclusion
Whether urban or rural, residential buildings represent the largest spatial elements by construction volume and are key to defining regional identity. However, historically, regulatory bodies and architects have focused more on public and heritage buildings than on new residences. This often results in crude urban housing imitations or simplistic copies of traditional rural homes, both hindering rural development.
This project presents a novel approach to designing and constructing new rural residences. Architects strive to dynamically inherit local architectural culture, ensuring new homes, communities, and landscapes align with villagers’ evolving lifestyles. Feasibility is also prioritized through cost control and collaborative construction methods.
Ultimately, the aim is to create a replicable, promotable new model for rural housing that contributes valuable insight to China’s rural development.
Project Drawings
Project Information
Project Name: New Era Rural Community in Yongchun County
Location: Wuxi Village, Wufeng Town, Yongchun County, Quanzhou City, Fujian Province
Owner: Wufeng Town People’s Government, Yongchun County
Design Unit: Sanwen Architecture
Lead Architects: He Wei, Chen Long
Team Members: Liang Zhuyu, Tang Jing, Wang Ziyi, Meng Xiangting, Liu Song, Liu Yong, Zhang Yu, Zheng Xin, Wu Xuan, Yao Xinghao
Construction Unit: Zhongbo Urban Construction Engineering Co., Ltd
Total Construction Area: 16,000 square meters
Phase I Building Area: 4,800 square meters
Design Period: July 2019 – December 2021
Phase I Completion Date: December 2022
Photography by Jin Weiqi
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