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(43,438 posts) Sat Apr 30, 2022, 01:10 AM Apr 2022

DnA_Design and Architecture transforms Chinese quarries into cultural spaces

https://www.dezeen.com/2022/04/24/dna-design-and-architecture-jinyun-quarries/

Chinese studio DnA_Design and Architecture has transformed a series of former stone quarries in Zhejiang Province into cultural spaces, making sensitive insertions into their grand hand-carved interiors. The abandoned quarries, which are among the thousands located in China's Jinyun county, have been converted into facilities for locals and tourists as part of a broader project to regenerate the area.

Beijing-based DnA_Design and Architecture was commissioned to transform nine of the excavated pits, three of which are now complete. These three spaces provide a library, performance venue and area for gathering. Drawing on the rich history of monuments and rock inscriptions in the region, the studio focused on highlighting the existing character of the quarries as much as possible. According to the studio, this also challenges the "over-designing" of popular tourist areas in rural China.

"The project is an ecological improvement to mend the interrupted nature," the studio told Dezeen. "The reuse of these abandoned quarries reconnects the local community with its thousand-year history and heritage." "The project is a rather minimal intervention, a micro-renovation and upgrade, addressing the possibility of spatial transformation of different quarries," the studio continued. Each quarry features a distinctive form and patterns as a result of having been largely excavated by hand, which informed their designs as pieces of "public infrastructure".

The first space, named Quarry 8, has been turned into an open library. Its existing stone platforms have been retained and adapted with new concrete steps and seating areas made from steel and pressed bamboo. Cabinets containing books have been built into the large steps of the quarry, with its tapering form creating naturally sheltered areas for reading. "Each platform is a multicultural study where one can read, practice calligraphy from stone rubbings and, in the future, access e-books," said the studio.

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