Part B: Bamboo Wall House Analysis - Site Analysis

Location

The Great Bamboo Wall is located in Badaling, Beijing, China.

Badaling, Beijing, China
http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=34.860491,108.26688&z=3&t=h&hl=en(accessed March 17, 2010)


Badaling is one of Beijing's biggest tourist destinations.  It lies on the edge of the North China Plain in the northeastern part of the country.  Kengo Kuma’s Great Bamboo Wall was part of an initiative to develop a series of houses, all by Asian architects along the Great Wall of China.  It is near the Badaling section of the Great Wall.[1]

http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=40.338524,116.04964&z=17&t=h&hl=en(accessed March 17, 2010)


1. Shared House designed by Kanika R'kui.
2. Cantilever House designed by Antonio Ochoa.
3. Airport designed by Chien Hsueh-Yi.
4. Distorted Courtyard designed by Rocco Yim.
5. Commune Club designed by Seung H-Sang.
6. Kid's Club in Commune.
7. Forest House designed by Nobuaki.
8. Bamboo Wall 2 designed by Kengo Kuma.


The suburban buildings shown in the above picture are freestanding objects in space.  These outdoor spaces are negative spaces because the buildings are not arranged to lend shape to the space in between.


The contour map of the site.

http://int.kateigaho.com/mar04/architect-kuma.html(accessed March 14, 2010)

Climate
Beijing's climate is defined as "continental monsoon".  The four seasons are distinctly recognizable.[2]

Climatological Information for Beijing, China

Location of weather station: 39.8N, 116.5E, altitude: 54M

* denotes number of days with at least 1.0mm of rainfall[3]

From the above information, it can be seen that the four seasons are very clear in Beijing with a temperate Spring, rainy Summer, clear Autumn and cold Winter.  The average temperature throughout the year is 11.8 degree Celsius (°C).  The coldest month is January with an average temperature of -4.3°C and the hottest month is July with an average temperature of 25.9°C.


Moreover, the Great Bamboo Wall house is located on 40°20'N 116°02'E, 
the sun path of the site is as below,

http://www.luxal.eu/resources/daylighting/docs/sunpath_40_north.pdf(accessed March 19, 2010)

Therefore, the Great Bamboo Wall House receives the least amount of sunlight from the North.

Reference:
[1] SOHO China Ltd. n.d. Bamboo Wall. http://www.communebythegreatwall.com/ (accessed March 21, 2010)
[2] Sin Hotel Guide. 2000. Beijing Climate. http://www.sinohotelguide.com/travel/aboutbeijing/general/climate.php(accessed March 21, 2010)
[3] Hong Kong Observatory. 2003. Climatological Information for Beijing, China. http://gb.weather.gov.hk/wxinfo/climat/world/chi/asia/china/beijing_c.htm(accessed March 21, 2010)
[4] Luxal. 2006. Sunpath Diagram. http://www.luxal.eu/resources/daylighting/docs/sunpath_40_north.pdf(accessed March 19, 2010)