Rockview Tea House in Weihai
- Sabine Drey
The wooded area of the Tashan nature reserve in the east of China developed in the course of time from a series of disused stone quarries. One of the escarpments now forms a rugged backdrop to the low-rise structure of the tea house. Its expansive roof is accessible to visitors and affords them a fine view of the large carob trees in the park. The irregular layout of the tea house came about as a result of an open space between the trees, which had to be preserved. Similarly, the facade, built with undressed stones from the surrounding area, expresses a respectful treatment of the landscape. These walls enclose six spaces, over which the flat Corten steel roof is drawn. A ramp leads up to the roof from the slope of the site. Two of the spaces house a kitchen and a toilet. Into the other spaces, the glazed sliding doors of the development are slid aside. Concealed behind this solid-looking building is a steel structure, which it was easy to assemble in its polygonal form between the trunks of the trees and which thus subordinates itself to nature.
