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Extreme in Between

Part 2 Project 2025
Shudi Tang
 Chinese University of Hong Kong | China
In between—a state that exists both as a physical threshold and as an abstract edge of presence. Through this exploration, I began to see the national border as the ultimate manifestation of in between: a line that divides not only land but also ideologies, cultures, and belief systems.

The China–Myanmar border, where conflict and natural disasters have turned the boundary into a fragile line between danger and refuge. Increasing numbers of displaced Myanmar children have crossed into China in search of safety. A photograph from a volunteer became the emotional and conceptual anchor of the design— children resting on tree branches In exile, gazing into the distance. The tree offered a moment of pause, a space suspended between conflict and the imagination of a future.

This project is located in a village straddling the China-Myanmar border. I designed a primary school along the border. inspired by the form and logic of a tree, its spatial system branches and layers, inviting children to climb, explore, and learn, It becomes both a forest and a threshold—a shared middle ground where children from both nations grow together, catching glimpses of one another and of hope through the canopy above.

Tutor(s)
Peter W Ferretto
2025
1."In Between" stems from reflections on everyday matters. It can refer to tangible objects or spaces as well as abstract concepts or relationships.
2.The national border is a unique "in between" state, a line that divides not only land but also ideologies, cultures, and belief systems. In northern Myanmar, children from the Kokang region often migrate across the border to escape conflict.
3.inspired by a photograph of refugee children from northern Myanmar. The tree becomes an object that draws the children away from the dangers of war, placing them in an "in between" state, where reality and imagination intertwine.
4. The school is located on the border between China and Myanmar, forming a “thick border”.
5. The school has no definite rooms, instead it is made up of a series of tree-branch-like platforms.
6.The site adapted reused two original building from China and Myanmar. A dialogue between the original structure and the new structure is generated.
7. Section.
8. Instead of using several images from different angles to depict space, I prefer to piece together spaces from multiple angles to form a way of viewing “in between”.
9. 1 to 100 model.
10. 1 to 40 model.
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