A Cultural Intersection Lightly Added to an Old Rural Village
Located in Quzhou, Zhejiang Province, China, Longyou is a region where historic rural settlements remain embedded within an agricultural landscape and where recent spatial experiments have emerged through the intersection of art and tourism. Among them, the Hushiguang Art Eco Site is a rural regeneration project that connects local everyday life with visitor experiences through dispersed artworks and public programs along the Qu River. Structured as a sequence of movement through installations distributed across fields and villages, the project focuses on introducing new spaces and activities into the existing rural environment through artistic interventions. Situated at the entrance to the village, Longyou Tourist Center serves as both the starting point of the project and the first point of encounter for visitors. It is here that visitors naturally cross paths with local residents before entering the village.
The site retained an irregular courtyard formed over generations through daily movement and negotiations among neighboring households. Defined by the overlap of the riverside road, village paths, and adjacent boundaries, this geometry reflects the spatial order of the rural community. Following the courtyard‘s oblique outline, the architects introduced a lightweight single-column passage and set a rectangular courtyard approximately five degrees off the late Qing dynasty house.
The passage acts as both circulation and an intermediate zone between road and house. It filters noise, draws river breezes inward, and creates a buffer for movement and temporary stay. Rather than functioning as an isolated destination, the tourist center extends the village‘s existing rhythms by creating everyday encounters between residents and visitors.
The roof eaves shift in height in response to surrounding conditions. Along the village road, the passage cuts through the former kitchen extension to form the café frontage before lowering into the entrance. Along the neighboring boundary, the roof descends to accommodate the existing tree while keeping distance from the old house and preserving the presence of its original façade.
Interior interventions were also kept to a minimum. Later-added wall panels and portions of the floor were removed to reveal the original timber structure, while an inserted galvanized steel framework combines display shelving, seating, and lighting. Lightly inserted between the existing rafters, the new structure avoids direct intervention in the original building, and the black epoxy floor distinguishes newly added elements from existing materials. Rather than restoration or reconstruction, the project adopts a strategy of preservation through minimal intervention, extending present use without erasing traces of time.
Material choices reinforce this approach. Galvanized steel tubes and corrugated stainless-steel panels were used for the passage and interior insertions, then cut and welded on site. By employing ordinary, readily available materials, the project establishes continuity with nearby sheds, temporary structures, and vernacular rural construction methods. Through reversible and lightweight interventions, Longyou Tourist Center balances preservation and change while remaining open to future adaptation.
Project: Longyou Tourist Center / Location: Longyou County, Quzhou, Zhejiang, China / Architect: Atelier tao+c / Project team: Tao Liu, Chunyan Cai, Guoxiong Liu, Xiangfei Tong / Construction team: Beijing Jianyan Urban Renewal Engineering Technology Co. LTD. / Furniture: Ziinlife / Use: tourist center / Gross floor area: 178m2 / Materials: galvanized steel, stainless steel corrugated plate, prefabricated concrete tiles, glass, laminated board, black grossy epoxy floor / Completion: 2023.10 / Photograph: ©Wen Studio (courtesy of the architect)
