Yanjiang Rural School

Yanjiang Village, Tongtian Town, Fengcheng, Yichun, China
New school block juxtaposts with new village development at the background
Photo © Domat
School overview from playground
Photo © Domat
Central staircase landing becomes communication space
Photo © Domat
Corridor during break
Photo © Domat
Covered playground
Photo © Domat
Courtyards are adopted for farming education
Photo © Domat
Classroom with vault ceiling
Photo © Domat
Multi-purpose
Photo © Domat
Model development of central staircase
Photo © Domat
Site Plan
Drawing © Domat
Cross ventilated classroom
Drawing © Domat
Ground Floor Plan
Drawing © Domat
Typical Floor Plan
Drawing © Domat
Architects
DOMAT
Location
Yanjiang Village, Tongtian Town, Fengcheng, Yichun, China
Year
2022
Client
KPMG Foundation, Fengcheng City Education and Sports Bureau, U-Hearts
Team
Maggie Ma, Mark Kingsley, Kelvin Chan, Stephanie Tung, Elsie Kan, Gianfranco Galagar, Luka Ng, Echo Xiang
Local Design Institude
Sichuan Acore Construction Engineering Design Co. Ltd
Contractor
Jiangxi Civic Landscape Limited Company

The Yanjiang Rural School is a school expansion project in a rural village in Jiangxi, China. The new school block replaced the old dilapidated structure to provide 13 classrooms for primary and kindergarten education with a library, accommodating 450 students from 5 surrounding villages.

The building works with the site context, including an existing dormitory block to create multiple courtyard spaces, which are adapted for agricultural education, encouraging children to return to sustain farming in the future. The design strategy emphasises integrity, using locally sourced materials, exposed structures, and drainage systems to reveal craftsmanship and ease maintenance. Passive environmental designs are incorporated to harness the natural context and reduce energy consumption. The project was remotely designed and constructed during COVID, under close remote monitoring with a limited budget, construction techniques, and coordination constraints.

The design strategies include:

Respecting context: The building form creates multiple courtyards with the existing structure and trees. Using the site’s level differences to minimise excavation, covered playgrounds and library space are designed with ample headroom.

Passive environmental design: North-south classroom arrangements optimise sunlight and cross ventilation. Vault roofs help to divert rainwater to suit the local climate and increase area and volume to cool the upper classrooms in summer.

Expressed Structure: A simple grid system organises the building, with drainage pipes embedded along the columns, for aesthetic integration and ease of maintenance. The curved doorways soften the building for habitation and ease of fire escape. Locally sourced fair-faced brick walls preserve construction integrity by making craftsmanship visible.

Encouraging interactions: Corridor walls incorporated seatings. Open staircases and flat roofs facilitate access variations and interactions between levels, encouraging social exchange.

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