Location: Southeast University, Nanjing, China
Construction Period: October 19–23, 2026
Principal Designers: Shen Yuchi, Wang Shuaizhong
Academic Advisor: Zhu Yuan
Concept Design: Sun Hairuo, Wang Yi
Joint Detailing: Zhang Chi, Tan Zimin
Technical Advisor: Zhang Xiangrong
Structural: Liu Yuexin, Zhang Hailei
Market Advisor: Ma Lihong, Shen Xiaojin
Component Scanning: Zhao Qi, Leng Ziyang, Bao Haoyang, Fang Qixing, Liao Xingyu
On-site Support: Liu Haoran, Wang Tian, Shi Ziying, Zhao Qi, Sun Hairuo, et al.
Funding: Jiangsu-Hong Kong-Macao University Alliance Fund; Frontiers of Architectural Research (FoAR)
Photography: Sun Hairuo, Liu Haoran
Media Coverage：https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/BkYLzHhKaf2hDZ9Jx0U6pg
“Windfall Pavilion” is a research project jointly led by Prof. WANG Shuaizhong of the [S]Equilibrium Lab at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) and Dr. SHEN Yuchi of the School of Architecture at Southeast University (SEU). Built at the entrance to the Bridge and Road Laboratory on SEU’s Sipailou Campus, it turns typhoon-felled plane-tree branches into a full-scale experiment that connects material reuse, structural education and on-site construction. The initiative is supported by the Jiangsu-Hong Kong-Macao University Alliance (JHMUA) Fund and Frontiers of Architectural Research (FoAR).
After the typhoon, fallen plane trees and discarded branches accumulated across the Southeast University campus and surrounding areas. Their shapes, dimensions and conditions varied considerably, making conventional timber design methods difficult to apply directly. The project therefore begins with the material itself, asking which branches can be identified and used, how a geometric scheme can adapt to them, and how these irregular members can work together with standardized new components.
The design uses a hybrid structural approach, combining a regular primary frame with reclaimed timber. A suspended cable surface and edge beams form a double-curved roof, while X-shaped columns at the four corners define the primary support frame. Reclaimed plane-tree branches are arranged as slender rods according to the project’s base-structure method, adding stiffness in the secondary direction. Their natural bends and forks shape how the branches are selected, positioned and integrated into the load path, rather than being cut to uniform dimensions.
Construction began on the ground, where the double-curved roof was assembled before being lifted as a unit from its four corners and temporarily fixed. Throughout this process, AR-assisted positioning helped the design team align components, while straps restrained deformation until the branches had been installed. The temporary supports and straps were then removed. On site, the timber fabricator revised the X-shaped column joints by introducing three interlocking connections instead of the two proposed in the design, turning a previously weak hinged connection into a rigid node. Once the pavilion was complete, the design team used AR again to check its geometric accuracy.
As a temporary structure for teaching, research and exhibition, the pavilion makes the structural role of reclaimed material visible and testable. Its design follows a “durable primary frame with a replaceable secondary layer” strategy: the regular structure carries long-term loads, while the plane-tree branches add stiffness and can be replaced individually as their performance declines. The project also treats its exhibition use, eventual dismantling and material recovery as part of the circular construction process, offering a concrete model for how discarded timber can re-enter construction through coordinated structural, digital and fabrication decisions.