Beijing Essence Architectural Design Co., Ltd.: Winner of World Design Awards 2025. I. Project Overview: An Integrated Art Palace Blending into the Landscape -As the core structure of the second-phase construction for Guizhou Vocational College of Industry & Commerce, the project is situated at the heart of the campus’s central cluster, adjacent to the library and teaching buildings, boasting excellent landscape views. The site features a unique topography, higher on the outside and lower on the inside, with an approximately 4-meter height difference between the side facing the external road and the side facing the campus lake area.

The Art Center is a composite space integrating student cultural activities, drama rehearsals, and small-scale art exhibitions. The design ingeniously utilizes the terrain, placing the theater’s main entrance on a 4.8-meter-high platform accessed via steps. This not only allows students to better enjoy the core landscape but also balances the building’s view-oriented quality, landmark status, and efficient evacuation needs.

The massive volume of the grand theater presents a sculptural abstract aesthetic. The public hall incorporates top lighting, where changing sunlight creates a dynamic play of light and shadow indoors, offering strong artistic appeal. The building’s facade uses grotto stone with a rich texture, interpreting a classic artistic temperament through contemporary design language.

Given the compact site, the design effectively connects pedestrian flows from buildings on both sides by creating a lofty passage hall on the underground level. Simultaneously, this space can serve as a display area for student exhibits, achieving multiple functions through integrated design.

II. Design Highlights & Value Enhancement

From the initial planning stage, the Art Center was positioned as a distinctive building, different from conventional teaching blocks. It is a work of art, aiming to enhance the overall campus image and guide students’ aesthetic sensibilities.

Core design highlights include:

Efficient Use of Topography: Maximizing the use of the natural 4-meter height difference achieves a natural extension and seamless connection between public spaces inside and outside the campus, creating a rich and unique spatial experience.

Climate-Responsive Friendly Design: Addressing Guizhou’s rainy climate, numerous corridors, archways, and sheltered platforms are designed to ensure students are unaffected by weather during breaks and leisure activities, creating a comfortable and pleasant outdoor environment.

Challenging Structural Aesthetics: The recessed arc arches and cantilevered structures, designed to achieve a sense of simplicity, present extremely high construction difficulty. The project utilizes advanced machinery for integrated construction, ensuring the precise realization of the design concept and demonstrating the perfect integration of technology and art.

III. Sustainable Development Strategy

The project adheres to green, sustainable design principles:

Passive Energy Saving: Responding to the local climate, the building form is relatively enclosed, reducing unnecessary windows to lower energy consumption.

Optimized Use of Natural Resources: Meticulously optimized natural ventilation and daylighting designs further reduce reliance on artificial lighting and air conditioning.

Multi-functional & Intensive Space Use: The multi-functional hall and public hall are designed for multi-scenario use in different time slots, improving space utilization efficiency, saving built-up area, and consequently reducing construction pollution.

Eco-friendly Construction: Making full use of the existing terrain significantly reduces earthwork excavation, minimizing disruption to the original ecology.

High-Performance Material Application: The use of Low-E energy-saving glass effectively enhances the thermal insulation performance of the building envelope.

Project Details:-
Firm
Beijing Essence Architectural Design Co., Ltd.

Architect
Bin Zhang

Project Name
Art Center of Guizhou Vocational College of Industry & Commerce

Project Category
Educational Design (Built)

Team
Weijun Li, Jiawei He, Jingjing Wang

Project Location
Guiyang City

Country
China

Photography ©Credit
©Tianxiang Li

ESSENCE DESIGN is a design firm dedicated to creativity and innovation. Our team brings together exceptional talents from various disciplines, focusing on projects related to education, art exhibitions, and cultural tourism.

We excel at discovering and extracting the inherent value of architecture from cultural contexts, employing artistic language to integrate craftsmanship, technology, and materials, thereby expressing the inspiring power of diverse cultures. We remain committed to exploring the forefront of technology and seeking optimal approaches, ensuring our creative work maintains high standards. This enables us to provide clients with the best solutions and contribute to the success of their projects.