Thailand Pavilion / BambuBuild

Architects: BambuBuild
Area: 516 m²
Year: 2019
Photographs: Yang Zhao
Landscape: MIT Landscape Construction
MEP: MIT Landscape Construction
Contractors: MIT Landscape Construction
Architecture: Tran Ba Tiep
Structure: Tran Ba Tiep
City: Guangzhou Shi
Country: China

Thailand Pavilion, designed by BambuBuild, is located in Nansha Bird Park, an ecological theme park integrating waterfowl breeding, science education, and sightseeing. Built for the 2019 International Colleges Design and Construction Competition and the 2nd Guangzhou Nansha Southeast Asia Bamboo Arts Festival, the pavilion later became an exhibition center for Thailand cultural tourism and the “One Belt, One Road” Bamboo Expo. Constructed with sustainable moso bamboo, the structure uses bolts and lashing joints to leverage bamboo’s strength. Prefabricated modular frames span 12 meters, with a 3-meter cantilever roof providing weather protection. The open architecture connects seamlessly with its natural surroundings, with the bamboo framework defining both the space and the spirit of the design.

The building is situated within Nansha Bird Park, an innovative ecological theme park that combines waterfowl breeding, science education, sightseeing, and recreational viewing. For 21 years, Nansha Bird Park has hosted the International Colleges Design and Construction Competition and Forum, which features various creative design themes and invites university teachers and students from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and ASEAN regions to participate.

In 2019, the competition coincided with the 2nd Guangzhou Nansha Southeast Asia Bamboo Arts Festival. It was designed to enhance the practical skills of students specializing in bamboo architecture and construction. Initially, the building served as the main event center for the competition and forum. Later, it was repurposed as an exhibition center for Thailand cultural tourism and trade, as well as China’s “One Belt, One Road” National Bamboo Expo.

The primary structure of the building is constructed using moso bamboo, a widely used and popular material in China. Recognized as one of the most environmentally friendly building materials, bamboo is a hollow tube without internal material for fastening. This hollow nature makes traditional joinery methods, such as tenon and mortise, unsuitable. Instead, bolts and lashing joints are utilized, leveraging the strength of bamboo’s dense outer fibers.

The building requires a large space to accommodate many people, but the maximum length of moso bamboo is limited to 6.5 meters, with a small diameter of approximately 30mm to 60mm. To address these constraints, the design optimizes bamboo’s unique characteristics to create a specialized construction that is either exclusively or most effectively achieved with bamboo. Bundled bamboo poles are assembled into structural frames using simple tools and low-skilled labor, resulting in a framework that is significantly stronger than individual bamboo poles.

In a park environment rich with greenery, water, and animals, the construction needed to be rapid and minimally disruptive to its surroundings. To achieve this, the structure was prefabricated prior to assembly, ensuring precision and enabling quick construction. This approach led to the adoption of a modular frame design. The bamboo frames span approximately 12 meters, with a 3-meter cantilevered roof providing protection from rain and sunlight. These frame structures are arranged along the building’s length to define the architectural space, with a spacing of about 2 meters between frames. The building features a completely open design, allowing it to harmoniously connect with the natural environment.

The building’s structure is integral to its architectural design, shaping both the physical form and the spatial experience. In some cases, the architecture itself emerges from the spirit of the structure. Bamboo architecture should embody this principle.