When the birds of poetry came the laurels of dreams
Ink and Emerald Green sign a fragrant covenant
- Shu Yu
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Shu Yu coffee on the banks of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal
Because of some chance, Shu Yu and I became friends. In the face of the name "Shu Yu", many Hangzhou people may be a little familiar? In fact, it is the Shu Yu in the "Shu Yu Coffee" by the Gongchen Bridge: a famous contemporary Chinese poet, writer, and owner of the café. The café is perfectly located not only on the thousand-year-old Grand Canal of Beijing and Hangzhou, but also next to the Gongchen Bridge, which was built during the Ming Chongzhen period.
Although the name of the shop is written as a café, it is actually a poet's living room. One evening, Shu Yu left me a message: Kitajima is coming, let's eat together. There were only five or six of us on the second floor of the whole café, and although there were exquisite and sumptuous Western food, everyone was chatting more, the poets talked about old friends anecdotes, tasted classic works, and the table seemed to be the center of the world that night.
△ Gongchen Bridge and Shuyu Cafe Courtesy photo: Shuyu
The "Grand Canal International Poetry Festival" is an event that Shu Yu has been founding. It has been going on for ten years since it invited famous poets and scholars from home and abroad to engage in a full range of dialogues on the city, life, art and so on. This year is another brand new beginning for Shu Yu, that is, the "Shu Yu Mountain House" located in Tonglu Muling Village, that is, the "Tonglu Old County International Writing Center" was officially opened.
Shu Yu was born and raised in Tonglu, and when she was a child, she often came from the county seat to play in The Village of Muling to visit her grandmother who lived here, so the Village of Muling has a special significance to this poet. As a result, the International Poetry Festival, which originated and flourished on the side of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, naturally spread into the countryside of Tonglu, and the Gongchen Bridge in the bustling city and the remote Village of Mother Ridge also became acquainted and dialogued because of poetry.
△ Aerial view of Shu Yu Mountain House and surrounding environment Photo: Hao Jun
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The small courtyard next to the "Osmanthus King"
Muling Village does have the conditions and soil to develop poetry culture. This is a village surrounded by mountains, I don't know when to start, the slope behind the house in the village is planted with osmanthus flowers, and in the center of the village there is a "osmanthus king" that is rumored to have been planted in the Song Dynasty, with thick trunks and lush foliage, and every time around the Mid-Autumn Festival, the whole village is full of rich osmanthus flowers. And this "Osmanthus King" is also the real starting point for entering the writing center.
There was originally an idle farmhouse at the site of the writing center, and the property rights were later acquired by the village collective. Originally intended to be remodeled on the basis of the old house, but the quality is too poor, can only be demolished and rebuilt, however, the main part of the building basically follows the original homestead, so now from the air bird's eye view, the writing center is still like a farmhouse, quietly located in a corner of the village, surrounded by lush trees and bamboo forests, the landscape is very good.
△ The original state of the venue Photo: He Yong
From the "Osmanthus King" up the stairs, through a bamboo forest, along the terrain a few turns, you come to the door of a courtyard. There are already a few well-grown trees inside and outside the yard that need to be preserved. Several of them, the osmanthus flowers, stretched out in shape and lush foliage, also became the opposite scene of the first entry into the yard. There is also a persimmon tree, located in the middle of the south yard, which provides a basis for the transition of the entrance path, supplemented by three shallow ponds planted with lotus flowers, making the short journey from the yard to the entrance gate full of changes.
△ Entrance to the mountain house Photo: Hao Jun
The main body of the house is three floors, the shape is square and simple, and the rammed earth exterior wall seems to indicate the existence of a farmhouse here. The facades of the verandas and meeting rooms are built with local masonry, which is also a local traditional practice, many of which are left after the demolition of the original building, and the deep and shallow chisel marks on the stone have a fine shadow in the sun, exuding a unique charm.
△ The main body of the building Photo: Hao Jun
The porch part is very spacious, and the courtyards on both sides extend to each other in space, and the indoor area on the first floor is a common area, and the living room, tea room, dining room, book bar and other spaces are integrated to meet the needs of the writing center to hold a variety of activities. The upper two floors are the rooms where the writer lives and works, and the view from the room or terrace is excellent.
The two yards on the south and west sides of the house are perhaps the biggest highlight of the building. Due to the limitations of the venue, it is unlikely or unnecessary to build a large conference room or function room, so some larger events must be considered outdoors, so a spacious yard becomes necessary here.
In fact, this also reflects the characteristics and value of a writer's studio located in the countryside. Poets and writers come here to better integrate into nature, get a different living experience than in the city, and thus have more creative inspiration.
△ Schematic diagram © of the 12th floor architectural studio
△ Courtyard and platform landscape Photo: Hao Jun
On the north side of the house is a mountain, with a stone retaining wall about three meters high, and climbing vines are planted on the ground, looking forward to climbing the wall one day. The retaining wall on the west side of the courtyard is combined with the terrain to fall into several steps, on the one hand, it dissolves the stiffness of the vertical retaining wall, and on the other hand, it can also be used as a seat for the audience when holding events. Along the edge of the yard, a few plum blossoms and cherry blossoms have been planted, and on the easternmost side of the yard, a vegetable field has been retained, and when the flowers bloom in the spring next year, the yard must be full of life.
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A common living room and museum in the countryside
As a contemporary sage, Shu Yu returned to the old county of Tonglu as a poet and writer, returned to The Mother Ridge, and became a new bridge connecting the city and the countryside, literature and the public, Tonglu and the world, bringing new development opportunities to the old county and the Mother Ridge Village.
On September 30 this year, a feast of poetry was held under the "Osmanthus King", which was also the opening ceremony of the Writing Center and the launching ceremony of the Tonglu Fuchunjiang Poetry Festival. After that, a group of poets and writers will come to the village to create and seek different inspirations. With the completion of the writing center, Jiuxian Street also signed a cooperation agreement with the College of Agriculture and Biotechnology of Zhejiang University and Zhejiang Modern Preferred Company on the development of osmanthus products, and next, the partners will give technical support in the research and development of osmanthus products and quality improvement, and help the village expand the sales channels of products.
△ Architectural night view Photo: Hao Jun
In addition to the writers living, creating and organizing various cultural exchange activities, the Writing Center is also a common living room and village museum in The Village of Mother Ridge. Shu Yu has carefully framed some of her collection of manuscripts and paintings and displayed them in various places in the writing center, and in the future, with the residence and creation of writers, I believe that there will be more and more such exhibits.
△ Indoor Photo: Hao Jun
In the writing center, I was also able to see Mr. Yu Guangzhong's handwritten letters for the first time, admire the calligraphy of Kitajima and Ouyang River, the paintings of Adonis and Munch, and I was very impressed by the strong artistic atmosphere and deep friendship between these poets and writers, perhaps this is the power of literature, making people more sensitive and warm.
△ Ouyang River calligraphy on the stairwell Photo: Hao Jun
△ Letter from Yu Guangzhong Photo: Hao Jun
△ Adonis painting (left); Kitajima manuscript (right) Photo: Hao Jun
Nowadays, relying on the writing center, Muling Village has been awarded the "Old County Poetry Research Center", set as the fixed awarding place of the "Tonglu Fuchunjiang Poetry Festival • Laureate Poet Award", and the "Tonglu Fuchunjiang Poetry Festival Organizing Committee" has also settled here, making the writing center assume more and more responsibilities and have more and more rich connotations. It is believed that with the holding of these activities, poets and writers will use the power of literature to inject new vitality into The Village, boost the village to take the road of integrated development of agricultural culture and tourism, and bring new opportunities for the development of the Village.
△ General floor plan © 12th floor architecture studio
△ One-storey floor plan © 12th floor architectural studio
△ Two-storey floor plan © 12th floor architectural studio
△ Three-storey floor plan © 12th floor architectural studio
△ East façade view © 12th floor architectural studio
△ South façade view © 12th floor architectural studio
△ Cross-sectional view © 12th floor architecture studio
Project Name: Shuyu Shanfang Tonglu Old County International Writing Center
Project Location: Muling Village, Tonglu, Zhejiang
Design unit: 12th floor architecture studio
Owner: Shu Yu
Construction period: May 2020 - September 2021
Site area: 1000 square meters
Building area: 560 m2
Photo: Hao Jun