Guizhou Media Vocational and Technical School Library & Information Center | West-line studio

Located in Qingzhen, an up and coming district west of Guiyang, the capital city of Guizhou province, the Library and Information Center is placed at the heart of the Guizhou Media Vocational and Technical School, a 20 hectares campus to be completed in 2026. The district of Qingzhen has an important educational legacy, dating back to the early 1900, when the area witnessed the flourishing of church-run schools, which helped broadening the access to education. To honor this unique legacy, the architects played with heights and natural light, filtered through colored glasses and iconic skylights, to recreate a meditative but grand atmosphere, almost spiritual, a reference to those churches which constitute such a meaningful chapter of regional history.

The five-story building is designed on a south-north axes, following the site’s natural slope, and is composed of two primary volumes. The student library at the southern end acts as a proper visual threshold, marking the transition from the open campus, while the northernmost volume follows the terrain, enclosing a series of courtyards and housing offices and studios. Progressing from south to north, from openness to enclosure, the two volumes constitute the core of the campus.

The main material selected for the facade of the library, and the whole campus, is a synthetic coating mixed with red sand, a locally sourced and cost-effective option which confers the building a strong sense of place. The red tone is a clear reference to the exposed red weathered rocks commonly found on the region hills, rich in iron and shaped by time, mist, rain and sunlight. The building mass is grounded and wants to rise from the mountain, bringing a strong connection with the land.

In contrast with the hearty exterior, the bright cathedral-like interiors are characterized by a matrix grid system. The building is perforated by a series of courtyards, a contemporary interpretation of the traditional ‘courtyard within a courtyard’ typology found in mountain settlements across the region, which also evokes the layout of classical Chinese academies. These subtractions to the original compact volume help ensuring natural lighting and ventilation throughout the building. Architects pay particular attention to local vernacular structures in order to reimagine them in their work, aware of the poetic power certain traditional layouts can have in cultivating learning and cultural continuity.

The interior space is also strongly punctuated by layered arched openings, sometimes running parallel, other enclosing inner spaces, which create a rich spatial network of overlapping sightlines and shifting perspectives. These repetitive openings create a sense of openness and collectivity, while encouraging moments of quiet reflection.

Suspended from above, clusters of light wells descend at varying heights. These sculptural openings diffuse a gentle, ambient light that enhances reading and study areas. At the same time, by spreading the light at different angles, they bring a theatrical quality to the space, reminiscent of stage lighting, a subtle reminder to the campus’ role as the main center for broadcasting film and media education in the region.

Project Info:

• Architects: West-line studio
• Country: Guiyang, China
• Area: 18876 m²
• Year: 2025
• Lead Architects: Haobo Wei, Jingsong Xie

• General Constructing: China Railway Fifth Bureau Group Construction Engineering Co.