- Project: The Field
- Architect: TEAM BLDG
- Location: China, Xiamen, Fujian
- Year: 2024
- Area: 842 m2
- Photography: Jonathan Leijonhufvud
In the Huli District of Xiamen, Fujian, a once-abandoned bathhouse belonging to an aluminum factory has been reborn as The Field—a contemplative studio and exhibition space designed by Team BLDG for Buddha artist Jiang Sheng. Originally integrated into a post-industrial creative park with bars, offices, and event venues, the site presented a unique opportunity for adaptive reuse: how to transform an austere industrial shell into a spiritual retreat.
The name The Field derives from Buddhist philosophy. Unlike the concept of an isolated “pure land,” this project seeks to be open, welcoming, and deeply rooted in human experience—a contemporary residence for Buddha in the everyday world.
Architecture as a Vessel for Buddha
The architectural challenge centered on reconciling tangible Buddha sculptures with intangible spiritual perception. Inspired by the Buddhist “Age of the Image,” when craftsmanship and devotion merged into physical forms, Team BLDG envisioned a space where architecture itself recedes into the background. The building becomes a silent vessel, allowing the statues and their spiritual aura to take precedence.
The existing three-block structure—stepped from south to north—was carefully reworked. Windows in Buildings 1 and 2 were sealed, interior partitions removed, and volumes simplified, creating a series of interconnected, introverted exhibition halls. Walls and ceilings were hand-painted in sandalwood yellow, a color symbolic of spirituality, applied with custom textures to unify the façades and interiors.
From the outside, the building blends into its environment, partially veiled by a mature magnolia tree that dominates the site, giving the architecture a sense of humility and disappearance.
Light as a Fundamental Material
Light was treated as the central design element, shaping both atmosphere and ritual. Inspired by traditional local architecture, Team BLDG introduced 31 skylights—circular and square, clustered and isolated—across the roof.
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The main hall is illuminated by 28 recessed circular skylights, producing a shifting “rain of light” that interacts dynamically with statues carved from dense stone and wood.
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The dark room, by contrast, uses diffused light from two square skylights and a narrow strip window, enhancing Buddha figures crafted from translucent jade and glass. Here, edges blur and dissolve, evoking a meditative, Zen-like state.
Through this choreography of illumination, The Field captures the passage of time, embedding daily and seasonal rhythms into the exhibition’s spiritual experience.
The Magnolia as a Living Landmark
The magnolia tree, preserved and celebrated throughout the design process, anchors the project both physically and symbolically. Its fragrance permeates the interiors, while its canopy visually shields the building, lending the architecture a subtle, almost hidden presence.
Circulation begins beneath the magnolia’s canopy, where visitors enter through a revolving door into a modest foyer. From there, they ascend into the double-height hall, guided by shafts of light. The journey continues into the darker exhibition chamber, across a roof terrace, and through new stairwells connecting exhibition spaces, offices, and fashion showrooms. This cyclical path mirrors Buddhist notions of return and renewal.
Roughness and Authenticity
Constrained by budget and local craftsmanship, the project embraced a deliberate “roughness.” Instead of polished perfection, the architecture highlights texture and imperfection—contrasting with the refined artistry of the Buddha statues. Walls were hand-finished by local workers after multiple on-site trials, reinforcing the project’s integrity and authenticity.
Unexpected phenomena—such as colored reflections from nearby buildings tinting interior walls—were intentionally preserved. The client welcomed these “accidents” as living expressions of Elysium, where impermanence and surprise are part of spiritual experience.
The Field by Team BLDG is more than an adaptive reuse project; it is a contemporary meditation on architecture’s role in spirituality. By integrating light, texture, and nature with profound restraint, the architects transformed a utilitarian bathhouse into a vessel of contemplation—where Buddha statues, magnolia blossoms, and shifting daylight converge to create an atmosphere of transcendence.
