The Haizhu Gardens: Guangzhou Group

by Brian Vargo (MDes ’15), Matt Ciccotti (MDes ’15) and Patrick Boateng II (MUP ’14)

Known as the ‘Green Lung of the City’, Haizhu Lake lies 10 miles outside of Guangzhou and remains one of the few pockets of open space in China’s third largest city. This project entails 50 acres of land along the lake, posing both a delicate context and a prime opportunity for a large-scale development. Our proposal navigates this juxtaposition by focusing on the region’s traditional building culture and the local ecology as a basis for development. Canals will extend the qualities of the lake into the site and divide the terrain into a series of landscapes that mediate between public and private spaces. These spaces are the 100 Haizhu Gardens – ranging in size, scale, activity and design to resonate with Haizhu’s cultural identity and create a comprehensive vision for development.