Architecture studio Wutopia Lab has renovated the Hubei Foreign Language Bookstore in Wuhan, China, inserting a shard-like glass lightwell that pierces through six stories.
The shape of this lightwell is mirrored on the bookshop's exterior by a facade of triangular-shaped aluminium plates.

Hubei Foreign Language Bookstore is designed to reference a mountain range or run of hills.
At night the outlines of the mountain range is illuminated by blue triangular lights.

The bookstore occupies a large mixed-use structure on Zhongan Road that dates back to the 1980.
It was subject to a series of alterations and developments that confused its interior layout and connection to the street.

Wutopia stripped this structure it back to its concrete structure to build a cultural and community hub, with a new glazed ground floor to draw in passers-by. "The first thing we needed to do was remove parts from unsafe expansions, then strengthen each addition from different periods into a solid whole," said the studio.
"Our team decided to use perforated aluminium plate to create the layers of 'hills', acting as the background of the street's trees and symbolising the new life of the bookstore."

Across six stories, the mixed-use building now houses the bookstore at its core.
This core is flanked by a mixed programme of arts spaces, restaurants and cafes.

Closed to the street by the aluminium screen, the interiors of the block are illuminated by a glass "light cone&qu...