Architects: CMAD Design Group

The Shenzhen Futian Experimental Education Group Qiaoxiang School (North Campus), formerly known as Fulong School, stands as a remarkable example of architectural design that blends education, nature, and urban efficiency. Situated at Liantangwei No.1 Road with the scenic Tanglang Mountain as its backdrop, the school occupies 17,617.66 square meters, with a total construction area of 44,249 m². It accommodates 48 classes, providing a nine-year integrated education program, and is strategically designed on a hillside, with a height difference of approximately 40 meters across the campus.

Integrating Architecture with the Natural Landscape

Drawing inspiration from ancient Chinese urban design principles, CMAD Design Group carefully studied soil quality, water regimes, celestial patterns, and feng shui, ensuring a harmonious relationship between human activity and the environment. The buildings emerge organically from the earth, creating a campus where students are continually immersed in nature. By leveraging multi-dimensional spaces and "thickening" the ground, the project optimizes urban land use efficiency, transforming limited space into a vibrant educational environment.

Thoughtful Terracing and Slope Integration

To preserve the natural surroundings and minimize excavation, the campus is terraced into multiple levels. Vertical retaining walls and strategically positioned slopes buffer the impact of construction on the hillside. Teaching buildings follow the terrain, set back in alignment with the contour lines, while retaining walls are overgrown with greenery, blending seamlessly with the mountain environment. The architectural design emphasizes subtlety, using horizontal facade lines, flower beds, and greenery to enhance ecological aesthetics while maintaining a scenic environment.

Dynamic Outdoor Learning and Activity Spaces

The campus features a pedestrian pathway connecting the main entrance to a central courtyard, resembling a mountain park journey. Along this pathway, seven courtyards at varying heights provide students with diverse spaces for outdoor learning, recreation, and exploration. Each step through the campus offers a new visual and sensory experience, encouraging curiosity and connection with the natural landscape.

The project prioritizes both educational functionality and interaction with nature. A spacious pick-up and drop-off plaza with sheltered waiting areas welcomes visitors and students. Ascending through landscaped steps, students reach the "Mountain Accompanied Courtyards" and elevated activity areas, which include specialized classrooms and club activity rooms for teaching, extracurricular programs, and student-teacher engagement. Sightseeing elevators and landscaped stairs ensure convenient access to teaching buildings, rooftops, and sports fields, even across significant elevation differences.

Innovative Multi-Level Design for Safety and Functionality

A large slab platform on the ground floor accommodates elevated activity areas, specialized classrooms for music and dance, and parking. Raising the ground by 10 meters, this slab serves as the campus's public activity hub and allows emergency access for firefighting. Five teaching buildings and a comprehensive building unfold across the platform at different elevations, creating a multidimensional and dynamic campus that integrates harmoniously with its mountainous setting.

A Campus Above the Clouds

Through a thoughtful combination of terracing, green integration, and architectural subtlety, Qiaoxiang School emerges from the hillside like a cloud-top paradise, offering students and teachers an inspiring environment. This unique design encourages exploration, creativity, and learning while connecting the campus community with the serenity of nature.

All photographs are works of  Fang Zhou