Temporal Temple
Location: Beijing, China
Type: Cultural
Size: 4000 Sf
Status: Concept Design
In its rising there is no light
In its falling there is no darkness,
A continous thread beyond description,
Lining what can not exist.
(Continuity, Dao de Jing)
The laws of nature and the physical world are encompassed in a continuous cycle. Embracing this brings brings balance and unity with the environment. An initial study explored continuity as defined by Daoist thought through the interaction between melting ice and hardening wax. A shell of wax is left behind as a physical memory of the action it contained (the melting ice). Translating this to architectural experience, built forms act as the shell encompassing human activity. In this project monolithic forms are embedded into a valley outside of Beijing, each interacting with the continuously changing topogaphy in a unique way. As time passes they will alter the flow of water shaping the hillside. Where the rectilinear forms extend below ground, they become soft and curvacious. This change in language between what is above and below refers to ideas of duality prevalent in the Dao. Beyond opposites, their interaction suggests that things are not always what they seem. What appears completely dark and solid from the outside becomes the source of light filling the cave below.
In its falling there is no darkness,
A continous thread beyond description,
Lining what can not exist.
(Continuity, Dao de Jing)
The laws of nature and the physical world are encompassed in a continuous cycle. Embracing this brings brings balance and unity with the environment. An initial study explored continuity as defined by Daoist thought through the interaction between melting ice and hardening wax. A shell of wax is left behind as a physical memory of the action it contained (the melting ice). Translating this to architectural experience, built forms act as the shell encompassing human activity. In this project monolithic forms are embedded into a valley outside of Beijing, each interacting with the continuously changing topogaphy in a unique way. As time passes they will alter the flow of water shaping the hillside. Where the rectilinear forms extend below ground, they become soft and curvacious. This change in language between what is above and below refers to ideas of duality prevalent in the Dao. Beyond opposites, their interaction suggests that things are not always what they seem. What appears completely dark and solid from the outside becomes the source of light filling the cave below.
