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The Beikun Garden, RUAN Studio, School of Design, Shanghai Jiao Tong University | International Design Awards Winners

The Beikun Garden

CompanyRUAN Studio, School of Design, Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Lead DesignersXing Ruan

Design TeamXing Ruan, Yang Zhang (planting), Dongmin Zhao, Fanqiang Kong (brass work), Xiongyin Wu, Shaobo Lu, Huichao Luo (Site supervision)

Project LocationShanghai, China

ClientShanghai Jiao Tong University

CreditsPhoto by Shengliang Su

Prize(s)Silver in Landscape Architecture / Educational / Cultural Spaces, Silver in Landscape Architecture / Community Spaces / Parks

Entry Description

Boundary walls are ubiquitous in China, serving to form enclosure. The Beikun Garden is a winding 300-metre-long campus wall with seen-through sections, and places for sitting and wondering. While the university retains its walled segregation, the landscapes inside and outside the campus form a continuum. This makes the wall a philosophical paradox.

The paradox also lies in the languid use of the useless – the passé fortification of the battlements and the warmth of the coarse brick fabric, imbuing the wall garden with a “legitimacy” of time and history.