Yaohua Wang wins 2014 Harvard GSD thesis prize with "Salvaged Stadium"

Recent Harvard Graduate School of Design graduate Yaohua Wang finished his M.Arch program on a high note by winning the 2014 James Templeton Kelley Prize for Best M.Arch II Thesis for his project, "Salvaged Stadium".

Salvaged Stadium by Yaohua Wang from Yaohua Wang on Vimeo.

Although Wang doesn't win an award every single time for his projects, his intricate ideas have spurred a healthy dose of debate in the past. His previous competition submissions include the Wutai Mountain Viewing Tower VII and the Amsterdam Iconic Pedestrian Bridge.

Have a look at "Salvaged Stadium" below.

Project statement:

"Let’s begin with a joke. A man went into a restaurant, and he asked the waitress; “Can I have a coffee without milk, please.” The waitress answers: “Sorry we don’t have milk today, can I give you a coffee without cream.” For me, this is a very interesting moment. It reveals that what you don’t get is also defining what you get, the hidden dimension behind the appearance. How could architecture gain this hidden dimension, beyond the physical form?"

"Here I’m trying to offer an option. This option unfolds through a narrative, which get presented in the form of a comic story. This story is a case study situated in China's hyper-development and top-heavy political climate. It’s a story happened in a fictional Chinese city. The focus of this story is an olympic stadium."

"As an olympic stadium, this design appears to be serving the need as a building for one time blossom, a national icon, a showing off of national power and the flourishing lead by the central government. But at the same time, it also hides a slippery future. It’s a story about how did an olympic stadium got salvaged. But maybe in the end you will found out, this is more than a simple salvation."

"There is an old Chinese phrase. Which means 'be fish on somebody’s chopping block'. It is using to describe a passive situation you found yourself in. Unfortunately, in front of the people with real power, we architects often found ourselves in this kind of situation. So when you are just a fish, you better be a little bit slippery. Be aware of your situation, and then find a way to make a comeback."

All images courtesy of Yaohua Wang.

Additional credits - Thesis Advisor: Preston Scott Cohen

Click through the gallery below to see sections, plans, and storyboard.