cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
images © yi wang, su chen, hetian zhang
all images courtesy of cutscapearchitecture

 

 

 

located in the forbidden city in beijing, the ‘red-wall teahouse’ by chinese studio cutscapearchitecture has been formed by a series of fractal, freestanding structures. the site previously served as a royal memorial temple for ancestors and was surrounded by the palace wall, a symbol of social class division in old china. the renovation took place right in the break of this wall, transforming two discarded warehouses – one attached and the other set three meters back.

 

an open garden was created by peeling back one of the existing roofs to introduce a number of courtyard spaces between the old and new structures. the ‘red-wall teahouse’ behaves as a threshold between the sublime royal garden of the palace and the regularity of daily life in the hutongs, offering an architectural gesture that is constantly readjusting and adapting.

 

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open courtyard spaces were created between the old and new structures

 

 

the teahouse consists of seven unique rooms that break off from one another in a type of cell division. an interplay between old and new, traditional and modern, and open and closed is created as visitors enter through existing doorways and window openings in the brick wall. the tea ceremony itself functions as the site’s main activity, however there are also areas provided for social events such as art exhibitions and  festival ceremonies.

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view of the middle courtyard

 

 

brushed stainless steel sheets and glass panels are placed in different angles to the red palace wall, reflecting its raw conditions back into the courtyard. the interior of the tearooms are finished differently with bamboo sheets, white marble, copper and acrylic tubes. each room adapting a unique character and dissolving the architecture into smaller pieces.

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the teahouse forms a threshold between the hutongs and the forbidden city

 

cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
view of the north teahouse interior

 

cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
a variety of rooms are inserted into the structures

 

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view of the cloud tearoom and bar

 

cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
the bamboo tearoom

 

cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
site plan

 

cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
roof plan

 

cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
floor plan

 

cutscapearchitecture inserts red-wall teahouse into the forbidden city in beijing
sections

 

 

project info:

 

project name: the forbidden city red-wall teahouse
location: the ancestral temple, the forbidden city, beijing, china
year: 2012-2014
completion date: 2014
architect: hong zhang, hetian zhang
design team: cheng zhang, hongbin pan, cheng lian, ziyue liu, penghao an, jihua sun, jie jing, xiaowei han
floor area: 280m2
photography: yi wang, su chen, hetian zhang

 

 

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