Beijing Cityvision Competition 2014

[The National Laboratory for Perfect City]

Type: Competition | Architecture
Location: Beijing, China
Organizer: Cityvision
Year: 2014
Award: FARM Cultural Park Prize

In the era of rapid evolution, mankind cannot stop the changes, but seeing themselves as the owner of earth; they make choices.   

When mankind needs to choose in 2031, they will choose “___________

“The competition among nations over natural land.

When world resources keep reducing, competition among nations will get more and more rigorous. Pollution and habitation deterioration will hinder the technological advancement and national image to the world. National government chooses, on behalf of his People, to safeguard the perfect national image. Government is afraid of extinction. So,  our Nature is abandoned. Capital spent on building huge domes around the city, recreating the perfect and realistic nature for his People to enjoy and for the world to see. Nature, without curing, is locked outside the domes. 

“National evolution over natural extinction

Experiments carried on to reproduce the perfect nature, with the most comfortable artificial sunlight. The nation evolves. The nation grows underground, his People travels through underground pedestrian network. All existing buildings enclosed by the domes become vertical connection to the underground. Ground gets confined and becomes the city playground. All satellite images will only see how his People are enjoying the nice “reproduced nature” perfectly.

“Abandonment over solution

Solution to pollution is given up. The Nation chose to abandon the lost control. 15% of natural land is abandoned every quarter, until we only have the area of reproduced nature left. No more ring roads, no more cars, but only inner city left.

“Army of perfection over acceptance of imperfection

Everything in the inner city needs to go through quality control. Each chop becomes the identity of perfection. Food, clothes, buildings, and people, all will be part of the army of perfection. Imperfection is abandoned in the locked-out nature. The newborns will never know there is once the imperfection in mankind.

“We are the perfect species on earth

Evolution forces the mankind to make choices. However, not every mankind can make their choice. The Nation controls the authority to choose. The Nation wants us to be the perfect species, and so, we will be.  Every of us will become the specimen inside the National Laboratory of the Perfect City.


Credits:
One Biters: Alan Cheung, Sarah Mui