On July 1, 2023, a wooden pavilion was completed in Lilishan Village, Lingyang Town in Anhui Province， designed by undergraduate students who began studies in 2022 in the Department of Architecture, School of Design, Shanghai Jiao Tong University.
As a course assignment for “Fundamentals of Design 2”, design and construction of the pavilion were completed by first-year architecture undergraduates under the guidance of Professor Zhuang Shen, Liu Shixing and Wang Hao. After six weeks of preliminary design work, each student completed a personal plan based on site analysis. After comprehensive evaluation results from the public, peers and experts, Shuai Zhe’s “Wufen Pavilion” was shortlisted as the final plan for construction.
In the following five weeks, 33 students worked together to deepen the design and organize the construction of the Pavilion so that the plan could be more consistent with respect for the rural environment, ensure safe use and sustainability of the structure, and allow for on-site construction work to be completed by student themselves.
From June 26 to July 1, students went to the site to build it under the leadership of three faculties. Despite the heavy sun in July, they actively devoted themselves to the construction work. Everyone cooperated with each other and efficiently completed a series of tasks including assembling, adjusting, fixing and polishing the wooden pavilion materials, and completed the construction as scheduled.
On the morning of July 1st, the Jiuhua Mountain Practice Base of School of Design, Shanghai Jiao Tong University was unveiled and the wooden pavilion was completed. The award ceremony was held in the lobby of Shiyuan Hotel
The event was hosted by Zhuang Shen, a professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Design. He shared with everyone the students’ process from conceptual design to on-site construction. The students' professional abilities, courage to take on the mission, and hard-working spirit were highly praised by the guests present.
Zhang Dandan, CPC Chair of School of Design, and Fang Caosheng, Mayor of Qingyang County, jointly unveiled the Jiuhua Mountain Practice Base of School of Design, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Zhang Dandan encouraged students stating: “Seeing such a beautiful pavilion standing among the green mountains and waters, with smoke curling from the kitchen and clouds floating in the sky, exuding a simple charm. I looked around and felt that the poetic dwelling we are pursuing is here. I am so glad to see students applying their professional knowledge into practice, and actively contributing to rural construction. At the same time, we would also like to thank the faculty for their guidance and the partners for their strong support for our students’ dreams.”
This Pavilion not only allowed the first-year students to improve their professional skills. It also enhanced their love and sense of responsibility for rural revitalization. In the process it provided them with new ideas and ways to contribute to the initiative. The students gave full play to their professional expertise led by design, and used practical action contribute to the building of beautiful villages. They all expressed that they would continue to improve their professional attributes, put their learning into practice and contribute to rural revitalization in the future.
