07 LUSHAN RURAL SURROUNDINGS

A new primary school in Lushan – which is around 160 km northwest of Nanchang, the capital of Jiangxi Province – will serve 120 children drawn from 12 villages. Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA), the campus also includes a dormitory and utility buildings within vaulted spaces that connect directly with the rural surroundings. Cantilevers protect the classrooms from the solar gain of Jiangxi’s sub-tropical climate and extend the teaching spaces into the landscape to provide a varied and interactive learning environment. An industrial robot will create foam moulds to assist with construction and to reduce the number of elements that have to be delivered to the project’s remote location.