Chinese ‘Floating Forest’ School Named World’s Best Building at World Architecture Festival 2023

At this year's World Architecture Festival, Approach Design Studio, based in Beijing, China, won the title of World Building of the Year for their floating forest school.

The Zhejiang University of Technology Engineering Design Group collaborated on the design of Huizhen High School, which was named the generally victor of WAF 2023, which took place in Singapore final week.

Design Features of the Building

The boarding school in Ningbo City, a significant port city in the northeastern Zhejiang province of China, south of Shanghai, was hailed as a daring experiment in efficiency-first campus design where individuals are encouraged to take their time and not waste it.

The campus of the school has classrooms hung in every corner, connected by winding paths and strewn treehouses to offer a break from the classroom and all with views of the surrounding landscape.

The WAF jury said the gently sloping roof, accessible by a ramp, also serves as an outdoor conference room and park with sports facilities open to the public on weekends, creating "a new architectural typology of the promenade".

Architects Approach Design Studio says the project aims to "bring the power of nature" into school buildings and design a new style for school life.

Studio director Di Ma said that they always look for the boundaries of architecture while doing something that's fun.

Their goal was to create a new school environment and integrate the force of nature into the structure, not just to design a school or work with novel forms, spaces, materials, and facades.

The structure provides a place for students to unwind and decompress in between classes.

Designer's Goal of the Building's Design

The WAF jury expressed its admiration for the design's ability to blend everyday elements with inventive elements, all while utilizing basic materials that could be implemented in any kind of school setting.

Paul Finch, director of the WAF program, stated: "We adored this building because it is delightful and unexpected."

The school that the architects have designed is a far cry from the traditional one, in which pupils are confined and subjected to both architectural and instructional pressure.

In contrast, this layout promotes strolling, getting outside, and the chance to reflect away from the demands of the classroom.

"As the architects note, you are at your most relaxed when you are wasting time, but not wasting; instead enjoying walking to classrooms through a "floating forest" with plug-in buildings and amenities, all with views of nature," Finch said according to Architects Journal.

Vicente Guallart of Guallart Architects in Spain, Richard Hassell, the founding director of WOHA architects, Peter Cook, and Albert Williamson-Taylor, co-founder of AKT II, were among the jurors for 2023.

Other winners at WAF included Cairo-based Design and More International's WAF Future Project: Experimental, which was awarded to The Probiotic Tower, a water tower with a sizable CO2-absobing algae bioreactor tank at its center.