“The Pinch” building is at once a library, community center and playground. It was designed by architects John Lin and Olivier Ottevare in collaboration with the University of Hong Kong for a small earthquake-damaged village in China’s Yunnan Province.
As Lin explained to Dezeen, villages in China often prioritize building houses over communal spaces, even though community-building is such an important part of village life.
“Although the government provided an open plaza for the reconstruction, we wanted to help introduce a program which would activate the site. By adding the library, we have created an important public and communal facility in the village,” the architect said.
The library’s sloping roof bridges the gap between a 13-foot-high retaining wall and basketball court below, serving as a wooden slide for squealing children. Just be sure to watch out for splinters, kids.
