International School of Design – HITSZ University

The design school site at Harbin University in Shenzhen is like a valley, with the arid cliffs of existing high-rise buildings on its western side, and on its eastern side the lush expanse of greenery on a hill. The Design School is built around a major north-south axis intended to link the heart of the campus to the city.
The design school is organised in a cluster. Its horizontal morphology associated with a grid-type geometry encourages a multiplicity of routes and places conducive to formal or informal meetings, which are essential supports for the creativity of its users.
The major elements of the programme are superimposed in three layers:
– The display centre, constituting the display spaces for student work, forms the base of the ensemble with the experimental sites (laboratories).
– The teaching area with the library is set in the central stratum.
– The research centre lies over the whole.