A Coastal Temporary Theater Guangdong Province, China film event outdoor space, Chinese coast building photos
A Coastal Temporary Theater in Guangdong Province
13 January 2026
Architect: Jijing & Zhenlin from Re-enchantment Design
Location: Guangdong Province, People’s Republic of China
Photos by Re-enchantment Design, KwanTeo
A Coastal Temporary Theater, China
Instant Squatter Hut: A Coastal Temporary Theater Co-created with Villagers
Re-enchantment Design was commissioned to build an 18-day outdoor temporary space for a coastal film event, which was required to integrate the functions of a theater, stage, exhibition hall and garden.
The venue is located at a coastal resort in Guangdong Province, China. The region boasts unique languages, customs, beliefs and dietary habits. Since 2015, a large number of villages and farmlands have been rapidly replaced by high-end residential areas and leisure resorts. Interestingly, the resort operators have hired many local villagers as staff, and the villagers are still allowed free access to the beach. As a result, the beach caters to a highly diverse mix of users.
Committed to the Authentic Land and Real-life Contexts
The design team conducted field research to learn about the remaining villages around the venue. During this process, the designers discovered a local traditional architectural form—the squatter settlement, which is widely distributed along the southern coast of China and in Southeast Asian countries. This became the source of their inspiration.
Ancestors of the local Tanka people gradually lost their land due to long-term fishing work at sea, and were forced to build squatter huts on the water with easily accessible materials (wood, bamboo, color steel tiles, thatch, etc.). This kind of “architecture without architects” is a survival wisdom and adaptive settlement form spontaneously evolved by the Tanka people in the long-term environment of coexisting with the ocean. It embodies the helplessness, struggles and sorrows of the ancestors, yet also embodies their determination, courage and wisdom to survive. We hope that through the squatter huts standing between the mountains and the sea, we can arouse the public’s common imagination and emotional resonance, letting people imagine how the ancestors set off from here and forged profound connections and entanglements with the world across the sea. Thus, we invited villagers with hands-on construction experience to join us in building this temporary structure.
We extracted the core features of squatter huts (stilts structure adapted to land-water boundaries, transparent and open framework, and organically assembled settlement form), and integrated layer trusses (modern industrial products) with bamboo frames (local vernacular materials). The layer trusses serve as the primary structure, which can cope with the changeable typhoon weather at the coast in August, and facilitate quick construction, disassembly, reassembly and expansion. The bamboo frames are completed in cooperation with the village team, and after the event, all the bamboo materials will be recycled and reused by the villagers.
Constructing a Contemporary Coastal Public Living Space
Taking into account the diverse spatial needs of different groups of people, the team incorporated modular units including an open-air cinema and stage, leisure zones, pop-up shops and workshops. This design creates an organically interwoven and mutually permeable fluid space, fostering rich and diverse social nodes for public life. After the event kicked off, various activities are staged here every day, such as traditional operas, rock music, folk music, interactive plays, film screenings and sharing sessions.
Sustainable Design for a Symbiotic and Circular Relationship
We adopted the design and construction of squatter settlements as a practical approach. Through the research and contemporary interpretation of the living patterns of specific ethnic groups, we enable the public to understand their folk beliefs, dietary traditions and festival customs, as well as their living conditions both locally and globally. “Seeing” itself is of great significance. It means that we have begun to rediscover anchors and possibilities between the local and the global; it means that we have consciously and proactively started to strive for a symbiotic and circular relationship—rather than division—between local communities and tourists, and between the conservation of traditional villages and the development of cultural tourism capital.
A Coastal Temporary Theater in Guangdong Province, China – Building Information
Architect: Jijing & Zhenlin from Re-enchantment Design – http://www.atelier-apeiron.com/
Project Title: A Coastal Temporary Theater
Client: KwanTeo
Production Company: Shantou Branch of China Overseas Property
Site area: 350 sqm
Gross Floor area: 300 sqm
Location: Golden Coast, Hao River Area, Shan Tou, China
Status: Has Concluded
Project start date:2025/5/20
Project completion date:2025/8/20
Cost:55,000 RMB
Collaborators: Villagers from Qian Tang Village
Photographer: Re-enchantment Design, KwanTeo
Photography: Re-enchantment Design, KwanTeo
A Coastal Temporary Theater, Guangdong Province, China film event outdoor space images / information received 130126
Location: Hengqin Island, Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, People’s Republic of China, East Asia.
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