Zhang Lei's Architectural Concept

Advocating the spatial relationship between rationality and logic is a tendency in Zhang Lei's early works. For example, Jiangsu Local Taxation Building (1998) and Nantong Foreign Language School Student Dormitory (1999) all express the rules of order and geometry. This is closely related to his traditional architectural education in Southeast University and the influence of Swiss architecture during his study in Switzerland. The flood in 1998 had a great influence on Zhang Lei's architectural concept. "A few of us volunteered to go to Nanchang for disaster relief. At that time, the house was washed away by the flood, and the government only gave each household a subsidy of 5,000 yuan. How can this meager fund build homes for the victims? " This kind of doubt and shock made Zhang Lei start thinking about the meaning of architecture again. What is architecture? Because post-disaster reconstruction and home construction of victims are a problem of life, demand and reality, and a realistic problem about living space, which has already exceeded the control scope of the principles and standards of architecture in the past. Therefore, 1998 Nanchang post-disaster reconstruction was a turning point in Zhang Lei's design career, so that he later attached great importance to buildings without architects.

"A building without an architect is designed without considering professional issues. It is a design that completely faces the real living situation and uses the most reasonable method to build a house, which is in line with reality and grasps the conditions of local people, things and things. " The idea began to appear in Zhang Lei's mind. 200 1 Zhang Lei considered the local climate and privacy, designed a balcony and used wooden shutters, which can not only ventilate but also achieve privacy. This very basic idea embodies a simple design thinking and returns to the root of people's lives, which makes the relationship between architecture and people. When Zhang Lei put forward the concept of "basic building", he was talking about people-oriented architectural design.

In Zhang Lei, the "basic" requirements of architecture are hidden in the selection and application of building materials. In Nanjing South Gallery, he used asbestos tiles, rusty doors and fir boards, all of which were simply made from local materials. The residence of Nanjing Gaochun poet Zhang Lei is made of red bricks. The reason is that there are brick kilns burning red bricks near the base, and the cost per square meter is not as high as that in 800 yuan. When brick becomes the main character of architecture, the architectural way of cutting half brick or protruding half brick strengthens the texture expression of materials in culture. This "basic" is the control of basic elements and the embodiment of regionality. In Zhang Lei's words, it is precisely because the "basic building" emphasizes "adapting to local conditions" and advocates simplicity of form and harmony with the environment, thus realizing the respect for the environment and nature invisibly.

An attitude: unity of opposites

"In the beginning, the most important thing for me was the process of establishing order. I always think that the so-called concept, imagination, design ability, etc. It is actually a kind of control ability. " Zhang Lei believes that architectural problems can be analyzed. He is always looking for the simplest and most direct answer. This is not a style, but an attitude. This attitude allows architects to make emotional responses to things in a rational way. "I like the kind of building that can move me, at least. And some works are cold, pure solution and pure machine. " In Zhang Lei's architectural thought, the key of this emotion lies in "unity of opposites". Western thinking emphasizes rationality, either black or white. "But China can't express a completely opposite thing in some way."

Unity of opposites is the design thought summarized by Zhang Lei for many years. It is a technique, an attitude and a philosophical view, which comes from his understanding of oriental wisdom. Fiona Fang, inside and outside, depth, quantity, positive and negative, causality, convergence and divergence, empty surplus ... Zhang Lei tried to find out the opposite keywords and tried to apply them to the design. "I wish I could show this expression from the building. I call this opposition and unity: simple and complex, familiar and unfamiliar. For example, the concrete conjoined house located in the residential area of the Republic of China in Yihe Road, Nanjing is the unity of opposites between the new and the old. " This is a very modern house, but my way of coordination is to put modern things in ancient historical blocks. The difference between the old and the new can highlight the value of the old house. Instead of destroying historical and cultural values, it has played an important role. Against each other, this is the best cooperation. "

Ideal: humanistic architecture

Because of his dual roles as a teacher and an architect, Zhang Lei has made theoretical achievements that other architects rarely have. "Simple and complex, familiar and unfamiliar"; Dialectical views such as "adjust measures to local conditions, hit the nail on the head, unity of opposites" emerged endlessly in the process of talking with him. Now Zhang Lei puts forward "humanistic architecture" on the basis of "basic architecture", which is his new exploration of critically responding to China's social reality and architectural theory.

In 2009, when designing Zhengzhou Zhengdong New District Urban Planning Exhibition Hall, Zhang Lei discussed a topic: how to make public buildings public. "Every time I go to Paris, I always go to the Pompidou Art Center. There is a square outside, where people paint and play the piano, as well as cafes, cinemas and art shops. It became the living room of the city. Public buildings in China pay attention to symbols, like heroism and monumental solemnity, and are divorced from citizens' life. "In the design of the urban planning exhibition hall in Zhengdong New District, I focused on the publicity of the building, with the entrance facing the street corner, indicating the characteristics of openness; The focus is on the smooth flow of bus lines. When the exhibition hall is not open, people can also walk from the outside to the roof. "

The design of the demolition community of Guangfu Garden in Yangzhou embodies humanistic care. "We focus on solving four problems. First, respect and continue traditional customs. The resettlement target of this project was originally suburban farmers. They used to set up sheds in the outdoor yard to organize weddings, funerals and weddings, hang clothes in the yard and grow vegetables in the green space ... but we hope to find a suitable way to give them space to continue their customs without affecting the environment; Second, do everything possible to meet the needs of the elderly. Most of the residents in the resettlement community are elderly people. They are basically not at home and like to go shopping. We should design more suitable public spaces for them. Moreover, the elderly have poor recognition ability and action ability, which should be considered in detail design; Third, do everything possible to reduce the cost of living. 18 floor houses, usually because the roof is not big enough, it is impossible to install solar water heaters in every household. However, considering the unity of the house, we have enlarged the roof of the house on 18 floor, so that every family can use solar energy, which is both energy-saving and money-saving. The fourth is to play the role of community organizations. This kind of residential property fee is usually not collected, and no property company is willing to manage it, so it is likely that the original villagers' group will manage the residential area. Our design should consider these problems and maximize cooperation. "

In Zhang Lei's eyes, demolition is not only about houses, but actually about community and neighborhood relations. "So our central idea is to rebuild the community. Let the residents in the old community have a sense of community belonging. "