physicians

The owners of this courtyard have been doctors for several generations. The husband's father once told me in tonality about the opportunities of his childhood: how his uncle-grandfather worked as a monk from his home as a monk at Gozan Lingsuke Temple, how he was responsible for taking sick care of the mountain people, and how he lived down the mountain for a short time, how he gave him three books of medicine. (To this day, I remember the doctor's genealogy, the podiatric treatise, the lakeshore.) As a result, he developed an interest in how doctors develop pain, eventually getting into the Capital Medical University. This experience, I guess, went on for generations, perhaps created a kind of family character. During the first meeting, the husband fully explained to me that there was a need for a spacious and bright space, and dark corners could not be accepted.
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prisons

The Taichung Mountain area in western Beijing was an important battleground during the war. At that time, Jungoi-mura fell into a Japanese army base. The courtyard was largely destroyed by the war and rebuilt by the Japanese army to serve as a temporary wartime prison. The single-slope eaves of the building around the yard face outwards, forming a whimsy. Surrounding the mountains are wide and the scenery is endless. But the central courtyard is surrounded by high walls, trapped in the shadows. AS THE ONLY SOURCE OF LIGHT, THE DARK INTERIOR OF THE QUADRANGLE BUILDING GOES WITHOUT SAYING. After the defeat of the Japanese army, the yard was returned to its original owner. The house became a prison, the prison became a home, and then the owner and the whole family moved to the city. The courtyard leaves traces of the lives of people of different eras. When we visited the site in the summer, some buildings had been damaged or even collapsed to varying degrees. But the high wall rises, and beneath it, the grass abounds in the courtyard. The environment reveals a special atmosphere and texture. After being abandoned for a few years, the courtyard was rebuilt to be used as a holiday villa and hospitality. But as it is, this place is surrounded by high walls, and it seems that the owner of the doctor thinks about the new room.
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Prison Break

THE EASIEST WAY TO CHANGE THE DESIGN IS TO DEMOLISH THE OLD, BROKEN ROOMS AND OPEN UP A NEW CHAPTER. But from another point of view, just like a prison, the section of Fort St. Angel on the banks of the Taib reveals a different message. First, as a tomb, a prison, and a castle, the high walls also offer a sense of refuge and security. Whether in reality (Castel Sant'Angelo) or those apocalyptic fantasy dramas (The Walking Dead Season 3), in a world of crisis, prisons instead serve as fortresses and shelters. Therefore, the memory of chopping up land is deplorable as this unique spatial scene disappears. The design becomes how to plan a “jailbreak” with the premise of keeping the site features.
First, we rebuild the collapsed frame, collapsed buildings and reinforced structures that have fallen and cracked. On the ground, the design gives new order through additions and connections. High above, new buildings are attached to the old house: three parasitic houses, and I keep them called “pull-ups,” “carry-on boxes,” and “tall cabinets.” They act as mediators, allowing sunlight, vision and people's activities to exchange on walls and roofs. This series of actions reconnects the courtyard under the high wall to the surrounding Guangdong River.
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All-in-one

The space between the corner of the yard and the existing housing is occupied first, and the separate areas on the first floor of the new building become a “coherent whole”. WHILE THE ELEVATION FACING THE INNER COURTYARD WAS OPENED, WITH LARGE GLASS REPLACING BRICK WALLS AND THIN WOODEN GRID FANS. The design attempts to create a new system buried under high walls. Light that changes throughout the day is reflected between white walls through continuous locations. Brings a richer light environment. Even if the high wall on the head is still there, the darkness becomes a changeable grayness, and so does the bright large space. In this space of continuous transformation, public places reside in it. Bedrooms are arranged in quiet corners or on an empty attic. The corner bedroom has a separate patio. The empty bedroom flips over the high wall for ample sunlight, and views of the mountain river.
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Jumping Wall House

The original entrance to the homestead is remote. We opened a new entrance on the wall of the alley in the south house. Visitors can directly enter the connected room. The first floor of the south house, in addition to the entrance hall, is located in a row of sliding doors to the south, hiding storage, equipment room, laundry, and a stairwell leading to the second floor. The “Suitcase” rises backwards on the second floor from the high wall on the north side, flipping over the high wall, creating new space. Away from the continuous location on the first floor, it serves as a room looking far south.
Turn north into the West Room, which is the heart of the entire public space. The large restaurant has the best view facing the courtyard, while four octaves connect the rest of the area. The site outside the east wall becomes an extension of the building, and under the high windows of the main street there is an open kitchen. The stairs on the north side of the kitchen lead to the roof. The newly added steel structure “pull-out” hangs on the roof of the east house. The occupied old roof extends the narrow roof area. The slope is transformed into a terrace, flanked by long tables of polished concrete, facing the Yamaguayan River and Warono directly to the east.

People standing in the courtyard can't see the added “pull-out basket”, but they can see crowds of rooftop activities and growing flowers. The side of the terrace opens to glass with a light strip. With daylight shining on the roof, the old wooden structure of the roof was saved from the shadows. Night light also spills onto the roof. The north house is directly connected to the east house, and as the oldest member that once survived the fire, we only replaced the decayed wooden posts, re-laid the roof, pushed the house that fell to the east, and kept the rest as much as possible, serving as an addition to the large restaurant, small living room, room and tea room. The West House as another end takes on a multifaceted function. On the one hand, the first floor is used as part of the public space, the audiovisual entertainment room. The “High Floor Cabinet” also becomes a temporary double room when there are more guests staying.
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Materials and construction

Budgets are very tight and limited. We recreated the original brick-built high wall elevations based on photographs. The old doorway, the old movie wall, and the brick carvings on the north side of the house are preserved. Corresponding to the rough texture of the old building is the new addition of a partly lightweight steel structure, large pieces of glass and red cedar wood finishes. The interior furniture is uniformly finished with cheaper wicker eucalyptus laminates in situ woodwork with concrete polishing on the floor. The steel structure has a large volume, rapid construction, and responds to complex site conditions.
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Project Information
Project Name: Jumping Wall House — Good Possession, and Escape from a Prison
Project Type: Detached House
Designer: Cazha Office
Project Design: 2021
Year of Completion: 2022
Design team: Cheng Hai, Wudi, Pan Juhao
Project Address: No.17 Junfeng Village, Jaitang Town, Mentouguo District, Beijing
Building Size: 283 ㎡
Photography Copyright: Direct
Partner: Structural Engineer: Koschäme
Client: Liu Yao, Shen Yuan
Material: Willow Eucalyptus Plywood, Red Cedar Solid Wood
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