TIC Artwork Heart / DOMANI

The overall “passive design” of the building minimizes energy consumption through the double-layer curtain wall system (clay brick grid + cavity + insulated Low-E tempered glass) on the east, south, and west facades. Compared with conventional curtain walls, the system reduces the heat conduction of the building by about 30% and estimates cooling energy consumption by 30%, effectively improving its insulation performance. At the same time, the 240mm-thick side openwork brick curtain wall system forms a sunlight filter, preventing glares caused by direct sunlight while enhancing the softness of the light through refraction.

An arch with a maximum span of 29 meters is created on the facade wall. The top of the arch is composed of cantilever beams and upturned overhanging folding slabs so that it’s higher than the beams between floors. The middle of the arch features cantilever beams and hanging columns and beams to achieve a wide scale. Finally, the non-arch section is built by cantilever beams and brick walls.

The Big Dream is a set of independent large outdoor installations designed by A&V. Its design is inspired by Earth Art and BDO fantasy, telling the metaphor of an invisible big giant or his vast loose dreams. The installations, which are especially loved by children, contrast with the huge circular square to highlight the conflict of ultimate rationality and pure artistic sensibility. The design intentionally reinforced its structure and material in addition to formal control, in order to provide a safe climbable miniature structure for kids.

The interior functional planning focuses on the vertical organization of spaces in the main building, and the integration of concealed engineering within the architectural structure provides more possibilities for flexible mixed-use during future operation. The reception area on the first floor emphasizes a transparent boundary between architecture and landscape. The interior design is based on the idea of de-interiorization. Firstly, in contrast to the traditional interior lighting solutions, a large intelligent preset light film ceiling is adopted to obtain a balance between indoor lighting and outdoor daylight. This lighting strategy is similar to the control of top lighting in photography, helping create a strong sense of vastness in the space. Secondly, the emphasis on architectural structure. The electromechanical and fire systems strictly follow the extension of their beam and column systems. Thirdly, the interior materials are directly derived from the architectural elements, bonding between interior and exterior while greatly reducing the construction costs and risks.

After the harmonious integration of interior space and architecture is realized, a visual focus is to create rich spatial and sensory experiences for visitors. Therefore, the original lighting product series inspired by clotheslines, commonly found in traditional dwellings, act as art installations in the interior. It provides supplementary lighting for different areas and is widely used on the first floor. The visually intertwining curves soften the space and respond to the circles and arcs of the building and landscape. Furniture in the lounge area explores the middle ground between traditional “table” and “side table”. The platforms of different heights with pre-embedded tracks cater to various dialogue scenes. The refined stone workmanship is manifested in the details.

The large bar counter breaks the boundary between waiters and customers, creating an open working area through the integration of functions. The furniture design subtly showcases a sense of flexibility and order in the space that enjoys the diversity of users.

Based on the technical fire planning that separated into the front part and the back, a “valley” passageway is constructed in the middle of the architecture. It creates a highly thorough and interactive cavity within the building. While separating the main displaying building volume from the operational annex, it releases an uninterrupted touring experience within the main building. Therefore, multiple functions and flexible alteration of the building would be possible through its life cycle. The main and annexed building volumes are connected horizontally by beam bridges, providing visitors an unexpected overlooking view amongst the interplay of space, light, and shadows.

From north to south in China, the color of clay bricks used in folk houses generally changes from dark to light. From the traditional use of humus to make clay bricks, which resulted in great losses of arable land and woods, to today’s large-scale industrialized production of clay and terracotta bricks, the genes of “brick” and “masonry” in Chinese folk architecture continue to be passed on. Of these, red bricks are particularly widely used in folk buildings for their low cost. With the development of urban construction criteria, however, traditional bricks and masonry techniques no longer meet the requirements of large-scale public buildings. To hold back the vanishing of traditional craftsmanship, we need to look deeper at it and redesign an adaptable method. The red bricks used in TIC Art Center were created by 25 sets of molds, resulting in rich specifications and trimming systems. The scale and proportion of the bricks were modernized in relation to the specifications of “hand-holdable bricks”, through iterative research on the six indicators, i.e. controllable furnace condition, material performance, applicable structure, process stability, production cost. Thus, the bricks were eventually refined.

All the interior furnishings and the art installations are original works, the copyrights of which are owned by A&V. In the event that plagiarism is discovered, A&V reserves the right to take legal actions.