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The International Horticultural Exposition 2014 opened in Qingdao on April 25th; the service center “Earthy Pond”, is named after the extant lake on Baiguo Mountain where the building is respectively located.  As the primary architecture of the Expo area, the building undertook multiple functions including circulation hub, activity center, restaurant, recreational landscape, cultural communication, exhibition, etc.  

 

The Baiguo Mountain and the Earthy Pond lakeswhere the named project is located have outstanding natural landscape.  Given the prominent location of the buildings by the lakes, the design treatment of the relationship between architecture and nature is vital to the deliverance of their organic integration.

 

The sunken courtyard of the Earthly Pond Service Center is adjoined to the lake wetland.  The architecture and landscape heights are set following the natural grade levels, providing multiple accessibilities and viewing experiences at different elevations.  The main architecture spaces are lower than the surrounding street levels, facing the central sunken courtyard, thereby accommodating the visitors while affording view of preeminent water landscape.

 

All of the hundreds of trees in the Earthly Pond Service Center area were preserved in their entirety; a rooftop platform and green space were also created, which promoted building efficiency and helped integrated the architecture into the landscape.

 

Due to the unique nature of the service centers, which have to handle large circulation flow, the design ensure visitors from all directions can reach the service center area swiftly; and at the same time, it provides for visitors who can’t gain access into the service centers momentarily as a venue for viewing and resting.