Atelier Liu Yuyang Architects Strings Fan-Shaped Timber Libraries Along a Park Canopy in Xinyang

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This article covers topics related to Landscape Design, Installations, Forest Garden, Natural Architecture, Building Design, Library Architecture, Chinese Small Scale Architecture. In Xinyang's Hundred Flowers Park, CLT reading rooms, polygonal kiosks and a tiled restroom pavilion share one winding membrane canopy.

In Xinyang's Hundred Flowers Park, CLT reading rooms, polygonal kiosks and a tiled restroom pavilion share one winding membrane canopy.

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UNI Editorial published Blog under Landscape Design, Installations on Oct 10, 2026

Public parks in Chinese cities are often generous in size and thin in reasons to stay. Hundred Flowers Park in Xinyang, Henan, has a formal civic core: a symmetrical plan, a central red gateway and broad paved axes. With the TBB Libraries, Atelier Liu Yuyang Architects leave that axis alone and work its edges. A long, stretchy linear gesture wraps the east and west wings of the central space, and a family of small timber pavilions sits beneath it. Together they turn the park's threshold into a place with books, tea, flowers and toilets.

What interests us is less any single building than the system. There are three pavilion types: a Fan Pavilion holding the cultural libraries, a set of Polygonal Pavilions, and a Terraced Pavilion that reuses a utilitarian restroom program. A tensile canopy on tilted steel struts ties them together. Everything is framed in cross-laminated timber, and the whole project covers only 2,560 m². The architects spread a modest budget of floor area across the length of the park instead of stacking it into one object. For a client like Xinyang To Be Better Industrial Co., Ltd., that is a bet on daily use over spectacle.

A Canopy That Draws the Park's Edge

Aerial view of a ribbon-like white canopy path winding between small pavilions and trees beside a road at dusk

Aerial view of a long white fabric canopy winding through park trees past a small pavilion at sunset

High aerial view of a symmetrical park with a central red timber gateway and curved canopies in morning haze

Aerial view of two curved metal-roofed pavilions flanking a paved axis toward high-rise towers in hazy evening light

Curved canopy roof with exposed timber rafters on slender steel columns beside a red running track in late afternoon light

Fabric canopy edge and angled steel columns over a paved walkway with a blurred jogger passing in summer light

Upward view of a tensile canopy on slender steel posts and timber edge beams against clear sky and green foliage

Row of tilted steel columns carrying translucent canopies with timber edges over a red path, a blurred walker passing on the pavement

From the air, the canopy reads as a white ribbon slipping between trees, pavilions and the road. It doesn't compete with the park's formal geometry. It loosens it. The two curved metal roofs of the libraries flank the main axis and frame the high-rise towers beyond, so the civic composition stays intact and the soft line does the work of welcoming people in.

At ground level, the canopy follows a red running track, and that pairing is smart. Joggers and walkers already move along this edge every day. Shade and a row of slender, angled columns give that movement a spine, and the pavilions become places you pass on a loop you were walking anyway, not destinations you have to plan a trip to.

Timber Ribs, Steel Legs, Fabric Skin

Walkway beneath the undulating canopy with timber ribs and tilted steel columns, two blurred pedestrians walking past a glazed frontage

Close-up of a timber beam with bolt holes meeting a grey steel post under a translucent canopy dappled by leaf shadows

Underside of the timber-ribbed canopy above a paved forecourt with planters and a glazed tea room in afternoon sun

Tensile fabric canopy on slanted steel struts and timber ribs over a glazed pavilion, lit warmly at dusk

Curved timber-beamed overhang above a glazed reading room with slanted steel posts, a gravel edge and shrubs in evening light

Covered walkway with timber beams, a slanted steel column and rattan chairs beside a planter bed, visitors strolling the park beyond

The structural language is simple: timber edge beams and ribs, grey steel posts set at a tilt, and a translucent membrane stretched over the top. The close-up of a bolted timber beam meeting a steel post shows the honesty of the assembly. Nothing is boxed in, and leaf shadows fall straight through the fabric onto the joints.

Tilting the columns is more than a stylistic tic. It reads as a field of trunks rather than a colonnade, which suits a park. Where the canopy meets the glazed tea rooms and reading rooms, the timber overhangs deepen and the structure shifts from pergola to porch. That gives the rattan chairs and planters an edge zone that is neither indoors nor fully outdoors.

The Fan Pavilion and Its Reading Rooms

Arched timber-framed glass pavilion with diagonal bracing, seen from under the canopy across a lawn with stepping stones and pebble edging

Barrel-vaulted timber-framed kiosk with glazed gable beside a red running path under the sweeping white canopy

Red walking path under a sweeping translucent canopy leading to timber-clad pavilions with glazed shopfronts and potted flowers, a woman strolling ahead

Reading room with timber roof beams, a pyramidal skylight and wooden bookshelves running toward a glazed wall in diffuse daylight

Interior corner with exposed timber rafters, perforated ceiling panels and a large potted maple among ceramics on shelves in soft daylight

Cafe seating with wooden tables and a bark-clad column facing a glazed wall and red paper lanterns over a green lawn

Dusk view along a red walking path, with an open glazed window and red lanterns beside a curving canopy

Two walkers pass under a curved fabric canopy toward a glowing timber-framed pavilion with red lanterns at dusk

The Fan Pavilion's plan borrows from the traditional folding fan and picks up the curve of the semi-circular entrance plazas beside it. Its roof is segmented like a fan opening. You could dismiss this as a cultural motif, but it does real work: the curve gathers the plaza edge, and the segmented roof lets the CLT cantilever without heavy intermediate supports. That keeps the reading floor open, so bookshelves can run straight to the glazed wall.

Inside, the atmosphere is calm and tactile. Exposed timber rafters, a pyramidal skylight and perforated ceiling panels give the rooms a soft daylight. Ceramics and a potted maple sit on the shelves. In the café, a bark-clad column and red paper lanterns face the lawn. At dusk, the glazed frontages glow along the red path, and the libraries take on the role of lanterns for the park.

Restrooms Treated as Architecture

Teal tile restroom volumes under a glulam timber frame with globe lights, a blurred person crossing the paved floor

Restroom entrance hall with teal tile walls, a pictogram figure, spherical pendant lights and a stair rising to the park in daylight

Open restroom entry with teal glazed tile walls, exposed timber beams and a pictogram sign, a visitor climbing steps in dappled daylight

Timber truss ceiling with globe pendants above teal tile volumes, two people seated on a low concrete ledge in afternoon sun

Teal tile restroom pavilion with a lit pictogram and clerestory windows, a blurred passerby on the lit path under dusk trees

The bravest move in the project is how it handles toilets. The Terraced Pavilion adapts a utilitarian restroom program and gives it the same glulam frame, globe pendants and careful detailing as the libraries. Teal glazed tile volumes sit under the timber roof like furniture in a room. A shared paved floor between them works as a covered public hall where people sit on low concrete ledges.

The bold pictogram figures and generous stair entries make the restrooms easy to find and pleasant to use, two things municipal park facilities rarely manage. We think this is where the project earns its civic credibility. A library brings prestige to a park, but a dignified restroom is what decides whether families stay all afternoon.

Pavilions Facing the Street

Low pavilion with teal glazed tile base and timber-framed upper band beside a sidewalk lined with young trees, under clear blue sky

Dusk view of the pavilion's glowing translucent upper panels and sunken entry ramp with steel railings, a pedestrian walking past

Timber-clad pavilion with teal tile base and shuttered windows beside a red running path, a pedestrian walking under park trees in afternoon sun

Street elevation of a low pavilion with teal tile base, timber band and awning windows behind three leafy trees in clear midday sun

Long low pavilion with teal tiled walls and timber-framed clerestory windows, a small green car parked in front at dusk

Pavilion glowing from within at twilight, its clerestory windows lit, with a blurred pedestrian walking past the street trees

Along the sidewalk, the service pavilion keeps a low profile: a teal tile base, a band of timber-framed clerestory and awning windows, and young street trees in front. The base anchors the building to the pavement, while the upper band reads as lighter and more domestic. A sunken entry ramp with steel railings handles the change in level without fuss.

After dark, the translucent upper panels glow, and the lighting by LUMIA Lab, with linear fixtures tracing the roof seams, makes the pavilion a soft beacon at the park's edge. It's a modest building, but it presents the park to the street with care instead of a fence.

Plans and Drawings

Exploded axonometric drawing of two curved library roofs and walls, with layers from skylights and CLT framing down to steel columns

Exploded axonometric drawing of a service station, with layers from roof and CLT frame down to tiled walls, ramp and semi-basement slab

Section drawing of a pergola showing a tilted membrane roof on a timber beam, splayed steel columns and cables, with two figures beneath

Floor plan drawing of a curved library pavilion with main hall, service counter, storage, restroom and electrical room, surrounded by paving and trees

Floor plan drawing of a curved library pavilion with two main halls, a service counter and small utility rooms along a pathway

Floor plan drawing of a service station with restrooms at both ends, a central rest space, entrances and surrounding trees

Elevation drawing of service station facades in four views, showing glazed braced upper volumes above brick base walls with a central stair opening

Plan drawing of two triangular flowerhouses with hexagonal floor patterns, entrance steps, counters and a curved rooftop staircase

Elevation and section drawings of a small triangular flowerhouse, showing glazed walls beneath curved dome roofs in four views

Plan drawing of two rhombic flowerhouses with tiled floors, counters, entrance steps and a rooftop staircase at the larger volume

Elevation and section drawing of a small flowerhouse with a V-shaped pitched roof, showing glazed panels, a door and a patterned base

Plan drawing of two pentagonal flowerhouses with hexagonal floor tiling, a counter, entrances and a rooftop staircase marked by numbered keys

Plan drawing of two hexagonal flowerhouses with honeycomb floor pattern, curved entry steps, a counter and a numbered legend

The exploded axonometrics make the kit of parts clear: skylights, CLT framing and steel columns for the libraries; roof, CLT frame, tiled walls, ramp and semi-basement slab for the service station. The pergola section shows how a tilted membrane, a single timber beam, splayed steel columns and cables produce the canopy's light profile. The structural consulting by LaLu Partners Structure Consulting shows in how little material each element uses.

The flowerhouse plans are the most playful sheets in the set. Triangular, rhombic, pentagonal and hexagonal versions each pair a small and a larger volume, with matching hexagonal or honeycomb floor tiling and a rooftop staircase on the bigger unit. They read as variations on one theme, the polygonal pavilion, and show how the architects let one structural logic produce a varied family along the canopy.

Why This Project Matters

Cities across China have built large parks quickly, and many now need to become places people actually use. The TBB Libraries show a workable model: spread small, well-made programs along the routes people already walk, link them with shade, and give the humblest functions the same design attention as the cultural ones. A library, a tea room, a flower kiosk and a restroom share one roof line and one material language, and that equality is the point.

The project also makes a quiet case for mass timber in public infrastructure. CLT allows open plans, cantilevered roofs and fast on-site assembly, and in pavilions this small, the exposed wood does most of the work of making the space feel warm. You don't need a landmark to transform a park. You need a dependable system, built carefully, repeated with wit.

TBB Libraries – Hundred Flowers Park Libraries by Atelier Liu Yuyang Architects. Location: Xinyang, China. Area: 2,560 m². Year: 2023. Photography: Fangfang Tian.

About the Studio

Atelier Liu Yuyang Architects

Official website of Atelier Liu Yuyang Architects, one of the studios behind this project.

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