In the early years of reform and growth, the Gangtou Diesel Power Plant was erected in the 1980s adjacent to the Shajing Ancient Fair in Shenzhen as part of the village-run industrial area of Shajing Gangtou, delivering power to the village of Shajing and adjoining urban villages. When the national grid entirely supplied Shenzhen’s electrical supply, the facility was shut down over a decade ago. The power plant ruins have grown dangerous owing to age and neglect. The power plant ruins and associated buildings will be removed in October 2019 to make way for the Bao’an Oyster Township Lake Park construction. The Shajing Village Hall-Rejuvenation represents a novel approach to preserving and revitalizing the ruins as industrial history, giving them new meaning. The physical and spiritual components of repairing the ruins are also important. © Yu Bai
Shajing Village Hall-Rejuvenation’s Design Concept
The material regeneration of the ruins – the old ruins are preserved to the fullest extent possible with reinforced and recycled concrete structures. New materials and blocks, such as steel and glass, are inserted into or wrapped around the old ruins, weaving and intermingling with one another, blurring the absolute boundaries between the new and the old, and transforming the entire structure into a continuous organism, similar to an old tree sprouting new shoots.
© Yu Bai
The spiritual rebirth of the ruins – The Shajing Village Hall (also known as t...