Text description provided by the architects. The quadrangle courtyard house in Beijing is the most typical form of northern residential architecture in Beijing. After more than 800 years of development, it has finally formed a strict spatial settlement. After the liberation, it gradually became a “social” residence. There was no hierarchical connection. Different families living in the same courtyard house shared the same courtyard and alley. These public spaces did indeed bring residents closer together, but they also deprived residents of their privacy. Even many basic living needs could not be guaranteed.
This project is a joint exploration by the owner and the designer of a new living model for Beijing’s quadrangle courtyard houses. Although the project area is not large, the owner hopes that the project can still accommodate both himself and his friends to live at the same time. Even the extra rooms can be rented out for a long time. Just like the “group living” in Friends, it requires a public living room space where everyone can gather and have meals together, but also have their own living units.
The building to be renovated is a standard one-entrance quadrangle courtyard house. The project is located in Chuziying Hutong, Tianqiao. Through the inserted structure and roof, the design blurs the boundaries between the original courtyard, interior and exterior. The newly created courtyard integrates with the interior space, bringing natural scenery, abundant air and natural light into the interior.
The design divides the original courtyard space and lifts it up. From the eaves, a “pigeon cage” grows out, breaking through the original roof. The new space set up above this “sea of tiles” is completely free from social attributes and is an independent space for personal dialogue with nature. Pushing open the “skylight” is like climbing onto the roof of the house, but you are still inside. Part of the original building’s tiled roof also extends into the interior. Just like the place where Li Tiantian and Guan Qiaohong met in “Devils on the Doorstep”, the roof of a Beijing quadrangle courtyard house is one of the few places within the city walls that offer freedom, romance and the ability to clear one’s mind.
The newly built “pigeon cage” is a pure geometric form placed on the roof. It visually interweaves with the original roof, and the blue brick gable and eave tiles are wrapped into the interior. The skylight glass on the roof is equipped with semi-transparent shading curtains, filtering the sunlight into a softer light. This series of treatments blurs the boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces, contrasts and unites modern and traditional architecture, and creates a contrast between bright and warm atmospheres. The relationship between new and old becomes ambiguous. The suspended “pigeon cage” is built with steel structure and is structurally separated from the brick and wood structure of the main building. The clear structural relationship allows the original wooden structure to be exposed.
The position of the dining bar counter spans the west room of the main house and the west wing room. The design visually distinguishes the newly built wing room from the existing main house through materials. White terrazzo and blue bricks divide the space into two parts. Black and white, smooth and rough, simple and complex create contrasts in height, texture, facade materials and spatial differentiation.n.
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