Ninetree Village

Ninetree Village is the second project from the studio of David Chipperfield in China. The complex consists of 12 residential buildings located in the province of Hangzhou, in a picturesque valley surrounded by bamboo forests. The masses of the buildings are arranged in a slightly irregular checkerboard pattern, which provides each of the twelve buildings with ample free space. The irregularity, given by the slight rotation of some objects, is a result of the sloping terrain.
The main entrance to the site is provided by a southern access road, which further branches into a network of paths leading residents to the individual houses.
The authors endeavored to preserve the charm and wildness of the surrounding landscape to the greatest extent, which is why each house is equipped with a sufficient number of parking spaces hidden in the basement. Thus, the houses are not surrounded by inappropriate parking lots, but by a bamboo grove, gradually blending with the surrounding lush greenery.
The complex consists of six types of apartment buildings of varying sizes and layouts, depending on the specific location of the house, its orientation, views, and access to natural light.
Five apartments in each house always occupy the complete area of one floor of approximately 400 m². The layout of the interior allows for a seamless merging of individual spaces, where functions define and separate only the solid elements of the background.
The choice of interior materials enhances the calm and understated atmosphere of the living area of the apartment, which is connected to the surrounding landscape thanks to a loggia that encircles the entire perimeter of the house.
In response to traditional principles of Chinese construction, as well as the bamboo grove surrounding the entire complex, the exterior facade of the buildings is formed by wooden slats arranged in various densities. This depends both on the degree of privacy provided by the interior function and on the requirement for the amount of natural light in each room.
Residents also have the option to regulate the degree of their own privacy or the atmosphere in their apartment through movable elements of the facade.

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Author: David Chipperfield Architects
Project Manager: Hans Krause
Architectural Team: Christoph Bartscherer, Libin Chen, Ulrich Hannen, Christian Helfrich, Lijun Shen, Natalia Vinuela
Engineering Team: ZSADI, Zhejiang South Architectural Design and Survey Ltd.
Landscape Architects: Levin Monsigny Landschaftsarchitekten