The Acoustical Society of China has published the list of award-winning works in the First "National Soundscape Design Competition for College Students" (the "Competition") on 9th November. The team made up of teachers and students from the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning came back with gratifying results, including 2 first prizes and 2 second prizes. Chongqing University is the only university that claimed two first prizes!
The First "National Soundscape Design Competition for College Students" is sponsored by the Acoustical Society of China in response to the call of the state government to provide more high quality ecological products that meet the ever-increasing needs of people for a better ecological environment. It aims to promote the planning and design of integration of "soundscape" into human settlement. The theme of the Competition is "From Theory to Practice-Soundscape Construction in Human Settlements". It is open to all full-time current students majoring in architecture, urban and rural planning, landscape architecture and environmental design. The Competition attracted teachers and students from colleges and universities across the country and received a total of 100 pieces of works from nearly 90 colleges and universities.
After the formal examination by the Organizing Committee and preliminary examination by the expert, a total of 50 pieces of works were selected for re-evaluation. During the re-evaluation, Professor Wu Shuoxian, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences from South China University of Technology, served as the counselor of the Judging Panel. Professor Kang Jian, a fellow of Royal Academy of Engineering and the Academy of Europe, served as the Chairman of the Judging Panel. The two worked with experts from colleges, universities, scientific research institutes and design institutions to conduct review by way of group defense. Finally, the award-winning works were determined, including 10 first prizes, 15 second prizes and 25 third prizes.
The works "Harmony in Diversity" and "Valley of Wind | Sound of Sand", completed by students under the supervision of Professor Xie Hui and Lecturer Liu Chang from the X-scape Lab of the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, were given the first prize. "Chunshui Flowery Path" and "Listen to the Nature" were given the second prize. Furthermore, the works "Rewind---Recalling the Voice of Chongqing", the works completed by the team made up of students from Nanjing University and Nanjing Forestry University under the supervision of Xie Hui and Liu Chang, was also given the first prize. The works were completed with the help of the soundscape design courses and workshops of Chongqing University, supported by the Higher Education Teaching Reform Research Program of Chongqing and the Industry-Academy Cooperation Joint Education Program under the Ministry of Education. The related teaching results have won the Excellent Paper Award for Higher Education Research and Teaching Reform of Chongqing, the Excellent Paper Award in China Landscape Architecture Education Conference and awards in many other important international competitions.
The honors came after the remarkable achievements Chongqing University has made in characteristic teaching of soundscape design in recent years, and raised the profile of Chongqing University in the field of soundscape design.
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Introduction to award winning works
First prize
Title of works
Harmony in Diversity
University
CQU
Team
He Rongjia, Zhu Ying, Ni Te, He Xiang
Supervisor
Xie Hui, Liu Chang
Design highlights
It includes four pavilions with four distinct themes, namely, "books, music, courtesy and painting", and is guided by sounds that indicate the functions and attributes of each pavilion. The lobby of each pavilion has a unique space to add to the uniqueness of the lobby, and indicate the characteristics of the pavilion. The introduction of soundscape aims to improve the comfort level in the atrium crowded with visitors, and provide guidance for the space. As for division of target groups, the division by group and division by motivation are adopted to allow each pavilion to target at a specific group of audience.
Title of works
Valley of Wind | Sound of Sand
University
CQU
Team
Yang Ping, Yang Dangshen, Wang Jie, Dai Fangyuan
Supervisor
Xie Hui, Liu Chang, Mao Ting
Design highlights
The vast and boundless deserts are mysterious and vital. The extremely severe natural environment in a desert differs significantly from what we see every day. It's impossible for visitors to understand the real environment in which desert plants grow from the plain display of desert plants in an exhibition hall of desert greenhouse. They will also be unable to feel how desert plants struggle to survive in such a hard environment. In the works, the approach of immersive visual creation of scenario and the three elements, including wind, sand and water, are adopted to provide flowing soundscape, so that visitors gain an intuitive understanding of the vastness of nature and the tenacious vitality of plants growing out of sand under the scorching sun.
Second prize
Title of works
Chunshui Flowery Path---A landscape design of Kunming Botanical Garden based on the "4 dimensions and 5 senses" theory
University
CQU
Team
Bai Xinyi, Ao Maoyi, Han Yue
Supervisor
Xie Hui, Liu Chang, Mao Ting
Design highlights
In the works, the research result of the soundscape of the four seasons is integrated into the indoor and outdoor soundscape design. Besides, the entrance, atrium and exterior ponds are designed in an artful way by taking into account the visual sense, auditory sense, olfactory sense and tactile sense. The "rain mirror" at the entrance that can adjust the volume of the water screen on the side of the platform directs visitors into the building. The sound shielding measures are used based on the environment sound to improve experience of visitors. The "flower mirror" at the center combines 4 scenarios corresponding to the "spring, summer, autumn and winter" as the topic of the museum, allowing visitors to indulge themselves in the growth of plants throughout the four seasons. The "water mirror" at the tail combines the sound barrier facility with the layout design of children's playground, and uses water sound as the axis that leads to the outdoor space.
Title of works
Listen to the Nature---Design of soundscape for new-generation libraries
University
CQU
Team
Li Yushan, Chen Shu, Huang Jie
Supervisor
Xie Hui, Liu Chang, Lyu Gang
Design highlights
The constant upgrading of science and technology is bringing earthshaking changes as to the architectural form of modern libraries and how people read. As a result, users are expecting something different from the sound environment of libraries.
The works is based on the use requirements for different reading scenarios in a modern library. Taking into account the advantages of surrounding natural landscape of the venue, it provides experience design that's based on the visual sense, auditory sense, tactile sense and etc. to the different reading scenarios in a modern library, in the hope that readers will be able to enjoy the fun of learning and experience the natural scenes when reading, communicating with others, having a rest and meditating.
