Located just outside the busy city of Hefei in Anhui Province, the Baiding Library is built on the site of a former farmhouse. Its architectural design embraces openness and harmony with nature, reflected in its form, material choices, and ambiance. This space offers visitors a peaceful retreat from the urban rush.
This location allows people to reconnect with nature, time, and themselves, fostering imagination, inner peace, and renewal. The first phase of the Dawei rural revitalization plan focuses on restoring the fabric of two neighboring villages, while the second phase aims to transform the farmland between them into a cultural landscape blending nature, art, and performance.
Situated in the southeast corner of the overall plan, the project borders a cluster of homestays on one side and is surrounded by picturesque rural scenery on the other three sides.
The library is composed of a solid base with a lightweight glass box above. These two staggered layers are arranged along the field and rotated at an angle to open toward the landscape. The ground floor houses a café and logistics area, featuring open glass sliding doors that guide visitors’ views to the surrounding fields.
The second floor contains the reading room, which is suspended four meters from the core structure, creating the sensation of a panoramic platform floating above the ground. Floor-to-ceiling transparent glass walls invite the natural landscape inside, seamlessly blending indoor and outdoor spaces and dissolving spatial boundaries.
The reading room cleverly uses a bookshelf layout to create a column-free open space, hiding the main structural supports within. The expansive oak bookshelf spirals upward, resembling a tree canopy and evoking the classic image of reading beneath rural trees while overlooking the wild landscape. Each “branch” of the bookshelf incorporates linear lighting connected to 2.2-meter-wide curtain wall columns, establishing a rhythmic and staggered visual flow that reinforces the concept of a growing tree crown and a harmonious reading environment.
In the center of the reading room, two open reading corners on either side provide space for small book clubs and other activities. Above these corners, a mirrored stainless steel ceiling extends the bookshelf visually to the ceiling, creating an infinite vertical space through reflection.
Positioned where tourist accommodations meet local village life, Baiding Library serves not only as a home for books but also as a cultural beacon in the Anhui grasslands. It enriches the cultural life of Dawei and nearby villages, energizing rural revitalization efforts. This space invites visitors’ thoughts to roam across vast grasslands and allows various groups to let their imagination soar freely. It functions as a panoramic living room for tourists to immerse themselves in pastoral views and as a diverse source of knowledge for local residents. The blending of communities embodies the library’s core as a public space fostering communication, while creating a dialogue between serene nature and vibrant community interaction.
Project Drawings
△ General Layout Plan
△ Floor Plan
△ Analysis Diagram
△ Sectional Perspective
Project Information
Architect: Protoscapes Source Architecture
Area: 756m²
Year: 2023
Photographer: Lin Yongchen
Lead Architect: Huang Jinhui
Design Team: Huang Jinhui, Chen Baijian, Qiu Bin, Lin Zhaoli, Lin Miaoting
Owner: Hefei Baohe District Rural Revitalization Investment Co., Ltd
Construction: Anhui Xintong Construction Group Co., Ltd
Location: Hefei City
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