The Hefei Beicheng Academy is part of the cultural and educational supporting facilities for Vanke·Central Park Residential Area, which has a total construction scale of nearly 1 million square meters. In the early stage of the project, it also served as a project exhibition center, and in the later stage, it functions as a library and a children’s education camp.
The academy is situated on a rectangular site, approximately 260 meters wide from east to west and 70 meters deep from north to south. To the south of the site lies an urban park covering an area of nearly 40,000 square meters, from which the “Central Park” project derives its name.
In terms of architectural design, Hefei Beicheng Academy creates a unique spatial atmosphere and visual effect through the application of U profile glass.
Material Matching and Contrast
In terms of material selection, Hefei Beicheng Academy combines the fair-faced concrete on the first floor with the U profile glass on the second and third floors, creating a contrast between light and heavy, as well as between virtual and solid. The fair-faced concrete has a smooth surface and a simple yet solid texture, forming a stable and open interface. On the other hand, the U profile glass, with its warm texture, serves as the enclosing surface of the main building space and presents a “semi-transparent sense of volume”. Together, these two materials can create rich visual expressions under different light changes.
Creation of a Semi-Transparent Sense of Volume
U profile glass possesses excellent light transmittance, allowing natural light to fully enter the interior. Meanwhile, its diffuse reflection property enables the building to exhibit a soft “semi-transparent” effect. This characteristic makes Hefei Beicheng Academy, under sunlight, neither a completely transparent and light structure nor a heavy solid one. Instead, it achieves a “semi-transparent sense of volume” that lies between the two, endowing the building with a unique temperament.
Spatial Openness and Fluidity
U profile glass is applied to the second and third floors of the building, where classrooms are arranged around a two-story-high courtyard. The courtyard not only functions as an outdoor activity space but also provides better natural lighting and ventilation for the classrooms. The use of U profile glass facilitates better communication and penetration between the indoor and outdoor spaces, thereby enhancing the openness and fluidity of the space.
Enriching the Architectural Expression