Tangible Light Tangible Light PEER Book Growth Space Light Transformation Video
The video was filmed and recorded by five middle school students from Yuanling County, Hunan Province, and edited by architects Shi Yiyuan and Xu Yi. PEER Book Growth Space is a book space supported by Taikang Yicai Foundation to provide reading and activities for the growth of students in the county. In 2020, due to the dim lighting in PEER space, architects Shi Yiyuan and Xu Yi were entrusted to carry out lighting transformation on the space. Architects designed a series of lighting design courses for students online. Students learned online remotely and completed the lighting design of the space under the guidance of architects, in the end, the students and local electricians jointly completed the renovation of PEER space lighting. The new space lighting was officially completed and put into use in 2021. The video was displayed at the first London Tsinghua Alumni Exhibition in Mayfair, London in 2024.
Tangible Light Tangible Light Space Results Photography 1
Size: 40x80cm
Material: high-definition particles printed, aluminum-plastic board
Lamps production and photography students: Tian Yizi, Du Zhihui, Xiang Guiqing, Li Yan, Wu Yi
Tangible Light Tangible Light Space Results Photography 2
Size: 40x80cm
Material: high-definition particles printed, aluminum-plastic board
Lamps production and photography students: Tian Yizi, Du Zhihui, Xiang Guiqing, Li Yan, Wu Yi
Tangible Light Tangible Light Space Results Photography 3
Size: 40x80cm
Material: high-definition particles printed, aluminum-plastic board
Lamps production and photography students: Tian Yizi, Du Zhihui, Xiang Guiqing, Li Yan, Wu Yi
Tangible Light Tangible Light PEER Book Growth Space Light Renovation Project Instruction Manual for Yuanling No.6 Middle
The manual was filmed and recorded by five middle school students from Yuanling County, Hunan Province, and edited and produced by architects Shi Yiyuan and Xu Yi. The manual records a series of lamps designed by the students in the five counties under the guidance of the architect. Finally, the architect simplified the works created by the students into three simple origami lamps, which were completed by the students using the light box material origami, and carried out illumination experiments and origami construction in PEER space. The manual records the extraordinary imagination and creativity of the students in the five counties.
The "PEER Space Lamps Renovation Project in Yuanling No.6 Middle Road" was jointly initiated by architectural designers Shi Yiyuan and Xu Yi. PEER Space Traveler Chen Xiaoxiao supported the implementation throughout the process. Yuanling No.6 Middle School is located in Guanzhuang Town, Yuanling, Hunan Province. Its PEER space was completed in 2016 and is the fourth resident space prepared by PEER Yiheng's best friend. However, in the actual use of the process, we found that the space of the original ceiling lighting is insufficient, it is difficult to meet the needs of students' daily reading and activities. Innovative transformation model: Due to the impact of the epidemic, architects were unable to visit the site and guide construction. To this end, the project team invited five middle school students from Yuanling No.6 Middle School to participate. Through online courses, the five county middle school students were allowed to design and make ideal lighting devices by themselves. Throughout the renovation process, the voices and creativity of the five county students were heard and respected, and the architect's role was limited to providing the necessary professional support to ensure that the students' ideas and ideas were fully expressed and ultimately translated into realistically usable lighting designs. This project not only improves the lighting quality of the space, but also allows students to feel their active participation and transformation ability in the campus environment in hands-on practice and creative expression, and truly realizes the design process of student-led and collaborative creation.
The practice of tangible light creation focuses on the intersection between architecture, education and social development, with particular attention to rural revitalization and the improvement of the educational environment in the county. In China, the county area accounts for 93% of the country's land and 53% of the population. However, the total county economy only accounts for 38% of the country's GDP, and the gap between urban and rural development is huge. In this context, county middle schools carry the whole community's expectation of "reading to change fate", but in a highly examination-oriented environment, the growth space of students is compressed. there is a lack of opportunities for social growth, space for self-expression and diversified evaluation system. In the face of this challenge, I hope to explore how space can become a medium of enabling education through community-based participatory design intervention, and promote the breakthrough of the county education ecology and the reading and learning environment of the county students. "Yuanling six PEER space lighting renovation project" is the practice of this concept. In this project, my team and I focused on the actual needs of middle school students in the county and found that the original lighting environment could not meet their reading and activity needs. Due to the restrictions of the epidemic, the architect was unable to conduct on-site visits, and we decided to adopt the design approach of "online courses + local co-creation" and invited five local county students to participate in the lighting renovation. Students learn the relationship between light and space through online courses, and make ideal lighting devices by themselves, realizing the role transformation from user to creator. This project not only improves the quality of space, but more importantly, it provides a possibility to break through the dilemma of county education-through practice and co-creation, students can actively intervene in their own learning and living environment.
The social significance of this exploration is that it is not only a transformation of physical space, but also an innovation of educational methods. In counties with limited resources, education is often simplified to standardized knowledge indoctrination, and my practice attempts to establish a more subjective, interactive and creative learning field. Through design intervention, I hope that education can return to its essence, so that students can gain a sense of control of space and a sense of belonging to the community, and cultivate independent thinking and collaboration ability in practice. This model is not only applicable to campus space, but also can be extended to a wider range of county public space transformation, exploring how to promote rural revitalization in a sustainable, low-tech, and high-participation manner in the reality of uneven urban and rural development. The diversified development of county education ecology allows more young people to see possibilities in their hometowns, not just forced to leave.
Shi Yiyuan: Certified by the Royal Institute of British Architects in 2024 as a global outstanding talent in the field of architecture, PEER Yiheng's best friend architectural space consultant, Master of Architecture from City University of London, Bachelor of Architecture from Tsinghua University
Xu Yi: Registered Architect in New York State, Master of Architecture, Columbia University, Bachelor of Architecture, Tsinghua University
Tian Yizi: a student in Class 4, Grade 1, No.6 Middle School, Yuanling County, Hunan Province, with a creative age of 15 years old
Du Zhihui: a student of Class 3, Grade 1, No.6 Middle School, Yuanling County, Hunan Province, with a creative age of 12 years old.
Xiang Guiqing: a student of Class 3, Grade 1, No.6 Middle School, Yuanling County, Hunan Province, with a creative age of 12 years old.
Li Yan: a student of Class 3, Grade 1, No.6 Middle School, Yuanling County, Hunan Province, with a creative age of 12 years old.
Wu Yi: A student of Class 3, Grade 1, No.6 Middle School, Yuanling County, Hunan Province, with a creative age of 13
