LUO studio extrudes arched timber bridge in china to revitalize traditional rural culture

timber bridge in gulou waterfront by luo studio

LUO studio has completed a timber bridge in gulou waterfront — an eco-cultural tourism resort in china. to differentiate from other urban constructions in the area, the resulting design takes on an arched shape that emerges as a covered corridor. this way, it meets the clearance requirements for large tour boats to pass through, all the while fitting with the surrounding landscape. meanwhile, in an attempt to revitalize traditional rural culture, the design team employed natural wooden materials to construct the bridge. 

constructing a covered corridor on bridges has been an old tradition that dates back to the warring states period. the initial intention was to strengthen the bridge structure, resist rain and moisture, keep the wood dry, and prevent corrosion. therefore, the roofed corridor enhances the overall structural stability and protects the arched wooden structure beneath from exposure to sun and rain.

all images by LUO studio

covered corridor construction

the bridge is located in the joint area between a dense traditional commercial street area and a children’s recreation area. thus, the project aims to accentuate the transition from the ‘practical’ commercial street area to the relatively ‘dreamy’ children’s recreation area, allowing visitors to feel a sense of ceremony in the moving process.

through structural calculation and construction analysis, LUO studio (see more here) utilized three large curved beams as main structural components, which are arranged in a parallel manner with a 2.8 spacing between each other. with full consideration of manufacturing and transportation costs, each main beam was divided into three sections at appropriate positions, connected and assembled by steel-strengthened bolts on the site, to form the complete wooden beam.

apart from the three large wooden arched beams that bear the main load of the bridge body, small wooden components are interlocked and anchored to the three main arched beams, functioning as sub-beams on upper and lower levels. in addition, the two ends of these sub-beams are combined with upward components to form a stable triangle of forces. the plane of the bridge’s roof is a complete rectangle. the top, left, right edges of the bridge’s side facades also consist of rectangular silhouettes, while only the lower edge is a natural curve. this generates height variations of the corridor space that is higher on the two sides and lower in the middle.

to ensure the structural stability of the covered corridor space, the design team set horizontal connecting rods in the middle section and added two viewing platforms on either side, which also avoid the monotonous feeling when viewing the corridor space from the entrance and exit. the small-section sub-structural system not only enhances the sense of structure in the corridor space but also reveals the elaborate craftsmanship and details to visitors on tour boats and offers them a unique visual experience.

the small-scale wooden components are arranged with small spacing in between. the spacing between neighboring substructures is set at 1,000mm equally. this perfectly matches the scales of the steps and metal exteriors. between neighboring sub-beams, three steps are set at the steep sections of the arch, while two steps are set at the gentle sections. the length of each external metal plate is controlled at about 900mm, which is appropriate for manufacturing, transporting, and installation. the 900mm length of timber frames also provides a suitable space for a single person to stand, lean, and rest.

top light, side, and bottom gaps

when walking slowly into the corridor space, visitors can catch the sparkling water under the bridge through the narrow gaps between steps. as they continue to climb the bridge, the bright light refracted by the upper and lower metal plates attract them to look out through the side gaps. while passing through the platforms from two ends to reach the center of the bridge corridor, visitors can fully experience the light and shadows from the top, feeling calmness and openness in the mind. the materials utilized were manufactured and processed by factories based on industrialization standards, and all the necessary timber and metal components were treated by modern industrial technology and methods.

during the installation and construction, only the three main beams were hoisted by large machinery. all other follow-up construction steps were fully adaptable and transportable through the hands of the workers in response to the local context. the whole construction process not only effectively harmonized with the surrounding construction sites and took advantage of efficient industrialized methods, but also conveyed rural warmth as well as the ‘localization’ of construction.

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project info:

name: timber bridge in gulou waterfront
designer: LUO studio

design/construction instruction: luo yujie, lu zhuojian, wang beilei

structural consulting: lalu structural consulting

construction firm: shenzhen zhenhui architectural engineering co., ltd.

client: jiangmen OCT co., ltd.

wood material suppliers: shengtehaosen, kingspine-house

lighting fixture supplier: meteor shower

location: gulou waterfront, jiangmen, guangdong, china

total spatial area: 166 sqm

photography: jin weiqi

video production: jin weiqi, xiao shiming

wooden bridge:

body size: 25.2m x 7.3m x 8.6m

main materials: pine wood, aluminum plate, glass

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: christina petridou | designboom