A total of 25 designs have been selected to enter the voting round of the Hanoi creative space design contest, which seeks initiatives to inspire new and unique ideas in designing and exploiting Hanoi’s spaces.
Project entitled ‘Connecting to the Future through Rails' Past’ by Le Quoc Tri.
The designs stood out from the 93 entries sent to the contest, launched in October 2020 by the Hanoi Department of Culture and Sports and Architecture Magazine in collaboration with the Hanoi’s People Committee and the Vietnam Association of Architects.
Contestants could self-suggest locations or spaces to design or choose one of three topics, including promoting infrastructure like community living spaces in residential areas, parks or hospitals, malls or walking streets; among others.
The total value of prizes for the professional and semi-professional sectors in all categories is up to VND 330 million (US$14,200).
One of the 25 is a project entitled ‘Connecting to the Future through Rails' Past’ by Le Quoc Tri, which suggests solutions to convert Gia Lam train factory into a complex of public cultural, trading, services and logistic spaces.
Accordingly, the new railway station will house a museum, a metro station, a creative art performance area, a commercial service centre, a food centre, and a green park.
With the spotlight on green spaces and the walking street which will connect the project with the train factory’s surrounding areas, the designer focused on developing public space for the project, including flower gardens, parks, square, and lakeside walking space.
Another outstanding project featured is the project to renovate the Thang Long Tobacco Factory into an innovative company by duo Pham Kien and Pham Khanh. The creative company is designed to include a creative village, a creative workspace, a co-working space, an exhibition hall, a cultural house, an entertainment space, and a food space.
The success of any reuse or transformation project depends largely on the current state of the building itself, which can be evaluated through not only its economic efficiency but also its historical and architectural value as well as its spiritual value in local people’s memories and interactions.
All of the 25 excellent projects of the contest seek to "replace" old factories in Hanoi with creative public spaces, contributing to awakening society’s potential and form a network of rich and attractive creative spaces for the capital city.