走近赫斯维克的世界：有趣的建筑让人驻足沉吟

从今年初在上海举办赫斯维克工作室建筑回顾展到6月《人本主义：一位匠造者的世界建设指南》中文版问世，又接连在上海交大、同济大学等高校现场演讲，在赫斯维克工作室成立30年之际，托马斯·赫斯维克以一系列密集的推广活动向公众展示其工作室近年来在世界各地的实践案例，更重要的是，这位“鬼才”设计师试图通过他独树一帜的作品激发人们对建筑情感价值的关注，并发起让建筑重新人本化的倡议。

From the retrospective exhibition of Heatherwick Studio in Shanghai at the beginning of this year to the release of the Chinese version of Humanise in June, and successive lectures at Shanghai Jiaotong University and Tongji University. On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the founding of Heatherwick Studio, with a series of intensive promotional activities, Heatherwick is presenting his works around the world, and more importantly, this ingenious designer is attempting to draw attention to the emotional value of architecture through his unique work, and launching a campaign to‘re-humanise’ architecture.

自赢得2010年上海世博会英国馆设计竞标以来，托马斯·赫斯维克就与上海结下不解之缘，迄今他在上海已设计了天安千树、上海外滩金融中心、西岸漩心等重要作品，并在上海设立伦敦之外的首个工作室，进一步拓展包括中国在内的海外市场。

在一个阳光明媚的上午，记者终于走进位于天安千树内的赫斯维克上海工作室，探究其创意世界。赫斯维克工作室希望其作品能与公众产生更多的互动，因此他的工作室，无论是在伦敦还是上海，都有一片区域对公众开放。在赫斯维克中国区主管张宇的引导下，记者参观了工作室内的建筑模型和产品设计，并从工作室的大阳台俯瞰苏州河的水岸景观，用心体会赫斯维克在采访视频中所说的“为苏州河打造的特色景观”。

Thomas Heatherwick has been associated with Shanghai since winning the design for the UK Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo 2010, his major works in Shanghai include 1000 Trees, the Bund Finance Centre and the Orbit in West Bund; he has set up his first studio outside of London in Shanghai to expand into overseas markets, including China. 

On a sunny morning, we finally entered Heatherwick Studio Shanghai, located inside 1000 Trees, to take a closer look at Heatherwick Studio’s creative world. The studio wants their works to be more interactive with the public, so there is an area in the studio, both in London and Shanghai, which is open to the public. Under the guidance of Heatherwick Studio’s China Lead, Leo Cheung, we visited the architectural models and product designs in the studio, as well as the large balcony overlooking the Suzhou Creek, to experience what Thomas Heatherwick had described in a video interview as ‘a special landscape for the Suzhou Creek’.

众所周知，托马斯·赫斯维克毕业于曼彻斯特理工学院三维设计专业，在各国与建筑师、艺术家合作了一系列杰出作品，但由于没有经过建筑学专业冗长学时和专业组织的认证，即使已有非常出名的代表作，托马斯·赫斯维克是不能自称“建筑师”的。记者好奇的是，这样非建筑师的设计师与受建筑学教育的建筑师在思维模式、工作方式上会有多大差异？记者也希望从一个跟随赫斯维克先生多年的合作伙伴那里听到与众不同的答案。

张宇略微沉吟，还是给出一个中规中矩的回答。他说，表面上看并没有多大的不同。赫斯维克工作室拥有不同国籍、不同专业背景的设计师，包括建筑、景观、人工智能领域的，这样一个多元化的群体，意味着工作室的环境是自由开放而包容。“我们希望每一个人都参与设计过程，大家都是平等的，可以自由发表意见并发挥个人所长。事实上，我们的每一个项目都是经历这样集思广益的过程。大家都是奔着同一个目标，一起协调工作，希望将项目实现。”但是，张宇强调了他们设计工作中的一个重要部分——关注人的体验、人的使用，还有人在使用过程中心情是否愉悦。

It is well known that Thomas Heatherwick had graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University with a degree in Three-Dimensional Design, and that he has done a series of outstanding works in various countries in collaboration with architects and artists. Due to the lack of professional training in architecture and accreditation by professional organisations, Thomas Heatherwick could not call himself an ‘architect’, even if he had created a lot of famous architecture. We are curious to know the differences in design approach and working method between Thomas Heatherwick and the traditionally educated architect. We are particularly interested in hearing the answer from someone who has been working with him for many years.

Leo pondered and gave a moderate answer. He said that on the surface there was not much difference. Heatherwick Studio has designers of different nationalities and professional backgrounds, including architecture, landscape, and artificial intelligence, and such a diverse group means that the studio's environment is free and open but inclusive. ‘We hope that everyone is involved in the design process, everyone is equal and free to express their opinions and contribute to the design. In fact, every project is the result of collective effort by all the team member. Everyone is after the same goal, working together in the hope of bringing the project to fruition.’ Leo also emphasised an important part of their design work - focusing on human experience and whether people are happy while using it.

今年初，在上海复星艺术中心举行的赫斯维克工作室建筑回顾展的主题是“构建灵魂建筑”，这一主题也可视为贯穿于赫斯维克设计过程中的重要线索。赫斯维克工作室将其归纳为一种信念：即使是像城市这样庞大的项目，也应当具备人性化的尺度，利用自然的能量，并将情感作为其目的的重要组成部分。

那么如何构筑灵魂的建筑？这个答案可能不唯一，又或许与个人际遇相关。

赫斯维克的建筑萌新是源于一次学生组织的图书义卖会上邂逅高迪的作品集。当他第一眼看见米拉之家的照片，他立刻被那像波涛起伏的建筑立面吸引住全部目光。此前他一直认为建筑是比较无聊、缺乏新意的。正如他在《人本主义》书里所写的，一百年来，受现代主义建筑思潮的影响，出现太多“过于扁平”“过于平淡”“过于笔直”“过于单调”的无聊建筑。

有趣的是，建筑师高迪其实是出身于一个锅炉匠家庭。高迪曾说，“锅炉匠可以用一个平面锻造一个容器，在开工之前就可以看到空间。”高迪的建筑方案里充满着大自然的元素，加上熟谙各种材料以及对锻造工艺的创新运用，使得高迪超越了许多同时代的建筑师，建立起一种新的设计语言。

而赫斯维克对于艺术的感知、对审美的追求可能也深受家族的影响。赫斯维克生长于一个充满浓厚艺术气息的家庭，祖父是作家和音乐教师；祖母是纺织品设计师，并曾为一名建筑师工作；母亲是珠宝首饰设计和制作人。而他的父亲带着年少的赫斯维克去参观了“设计中心”的展览，这个有趣的经历坚定了赫斯维克想成为一名设计师的决心。赫斯维克在大学时学习艺术与设计课程，涵盖素描、绘画、雕塑、纺织品、三维设计等门类，在接触和切割各种材料中激发创作的灵感。为完成《建筑的灵感：建筑中的实际制造经验案例》论文，他在英国开展田野调查，亲自拜访了建筑工人、细木工、教师、建筑师。他以亲手建造一栋房子作为他的毕业设计，虽然这个设计被他的导师评价为“不是建筑”。时至今日，赫斯维克已是享誉全球的设计师，伴随着越来越响的名气，批判与质疑声也接踵而至。

赫斯维克作品展模型，吴真平摄

some  models on the exhibition of Heatherwick

photo by Wu Zhenping

The theme of the Heatherwick Studio's exhibition held earlier this year at the Fosun Art Centre in Shanghai was ‘Building Soulfulness’, which can be seen as an important thread through the studio’s works. Thomas Heatherwick had summarised it as a belief that even projects as large as cities should have a human scale, relate to nature and make human emotion an important design consideration.

How to construct soulful architecture? There may be more than one answer and it may be related to personal experience.

Heatherwick’s interests in architecture came from an encounter with Gaudi’s works at a student-organised book sale. When he first saw the photographs of Casa Mila, he was immediately captivated by the undulating façade of the building. He previously thought of architecture as rather boring and uninspiring. As he wrote in his book Humanise, over the past hundred years, under the influence of modernist thinking, there have been too many buildings which are ‘too flat’, ‘too straight’, ‘too shiny’.

Interestingly, Gaudi actually came from a family of boilermakers. Gaudi once said, ‘A boilermaker can forge a vessel with a flat surface and see the space before he starts.’ Gaudi’s works are full of natural elements, and his familiarity with the variety of materials and innovative use of the forging process have enabled Gaudi to surpass many of his contemporaries and establish a new design language.

Heatherwick’s perception of art and pursuit of aesthetics may have been heavily influenced by his family. He grew up in an artistic family, with a grandfather who was a writer and music teacher, a grandmother who was a textile designer and once worked for an architect, and a mother who was a jewellery designer and maker. His father took him to an exhibition in the Design Centre, an interesting experience that cemented his determination to become a designer. Heatherwick studied art and design at university, covering drawing, painting, sculpture, textiles, and three-dimensional design, and working with different materials. For his dissertation, ‘Inspiration for Architecture: Experiential Cases of Practical Fabrication in Building,’ he conducted fieldwork in the United Kingdom, visited construction workers, craftsman, teachers, and architects. He built a pavilion as his final project, although this design was described by his tutor as ‘not architecture’.

Today,Heatherwick is a world-renowned designer, but with his growing fame comes criticism and scepticism.

你可能不喜欢赫斯维克的设计，但一定不会忽视他的作品及其影响力。纽约哈德逊广场的Vessel（松果体）于2019年建成，迅速成为纽约新地标，每天吸引超过5万人参观；上海苏州河边的天安千树，2021年开业以来，由一簇簇拔地而起的花坛组成的奇特景观不仅是市民游客“打卡”热点，也引发公众对于城市景观的热烈讨论。

许多人开始批评赫斯维克的设计过于强调网红效果，忽略了建筑与环境的协调以及人的感受，尤其是接连发生在Vessel的不幸事件，导致这个网红地标临时关闭了3年。在增加防护网后，Vessel在前些时候重新开放而且热度不减。

对此，张宇回应道：“大家看到的所谓网红建筑，其实都是各方协作的结果。工作室的确想做出与众不同的建筑，给公众提供独特的体验，引起大家的思考和讨论。身为设计师，我们希望为当地量身定做一栋合适的建筑，这就会动用很多的社会资源，也要协调各方的利益。所以，我们会做许多不同方案在内部讨论，然后向业主汇报，与顾问协商，甚至咨询项目附近的居民，听取他们的意见，让最终呈现的建筑不仅仅服务于业主，也服务于居住和生活在附近乃至整个城市的人。”

另外，赫斯维克工作室的业务遍布世界各地，为了加强项目与当地的联系，赫斯维克工作室与项目当地的建筑师合作，从地理环境、法律法规、文化互动方面推动项目的进展，让设计更具在地性、文化性。“工作室成立30年以来，项目涵盖不同种类和尺度，但始终关注人本体验。”张宇表示，“每一个项目都是根据它所处的环境、文化、地理因素，以及附近的居民的生活习惯量身定制的。我们会做许多研究，在这些研究的基础上，再加上工作室团队的设计理念和创意去塑造一个全新的项目。”

张宇重申了赫斯维克工作室的一贯主张。“建筑应该是跟人的情感发生关系的。每天在城市里生活的人，都会经过、感受到建筑。让人们放慢脚步去观看，甚至停下来去思考建筑，是我们工作室所希望看到的。如果人们能被我们设计的建筑所吸引，进入内部感受空间，并在使用建筑过程中产生愉悦的心情，这对我们来说已算成功。”

不过，由建筑带来的体验，其实是很主观的，有人喜欢，有人不喜欢。张宇真诚地说道，“工作室会认真倾听不同的声音，吸取以往经验,使新项目有所进步，避免招致同样的批评。”比如，针对Vessel的安全隐患，赫斯维克工作室与业主一起努力，加固防范措施，给Vessel新增了钢网围栏，终于让这个地标在10月重新对外开放。

You may not be a fan of Heatherwick’s design, but you certainly won’t be able to miss his works and influence. The Vessel in Hudson Yard completed in 2019 quickly became a new landmark in New York, attracting more than 50,000 people to visit every day;  The 1000 Trees opened in 2021, a cluster of rising planters made up of peculiar landscape is not only a hot spot for tourists and locals but also triggered heated public discussions about urban landscape.

Many began to criticise Heatherwick’s design for placing too much emphasis on the WOW factor and ignoring the harmony of building with its environment and human experience, especially after a succession of unfortunate events at the Vessel, which led to the temporary closure of the popular landmark for three years, The Vessel reopened earlier this year with a new protective mesh and is proving popular again.

With regard to this, Leo said, ‘The so-called instagram building was actually the result of collaborative process. The studio does want to create extraordinary building that provide the public with a unique experience and inspire people to think and discuss. As designers, we want to tailor-make the design for the area and the city it is located, which will need to co-ordinate with a lot of different parties. The ideation process will generate different proposals for internal discussion, then report to the client, discuss with consultants, and even consult the public to understand their needs, so that the final building does not only serve the owner but also the people who live and work in the neighbourhood and even the city as a whole.’

In addition, Heatherwick Studio operates all over the world, in order to strengthen the connection between the project and the local area, the studio collaborates with local architects to work with local culture, history, codes and regulations in order to make the design more local and culturally relevant. ‘Since the studio was founded 30 years ago, we have worked across all scales and typologies. Our main interest is in human experience.’ Leo said, ‘Each project is tailor-made to the local environment, culture, and context in which it is located, as well as the lifestyle of the people living there. We would conduct extensive research that forms the basis of the creative process and results in a unique project.’

Leo reiterated the philosophy of Heatherwick Studio, ‘Architecture should have a relationship with human emotion. People who live in the city pass by buildings every day. Getting people to slow down to view at and even stop to ponder about the building is what we want to achieve. If people are attracted by the buildings we design, enter the building, and enjoy using the buildings, this could be considered a success for us.’

However, the experience could be quite subjective, with some people liking it and others disliking it. Leo said, ‘We will listen to different voices and learn from previous experience to make future projects better and avoid having the same criticism.’  In response to the Vessel’s safety concerns, Heatherwick Studio worked with the client and added steel mesh to it, allowing the landmark to be reopened to the public in October.

赫斯维克工作室的设计作品比较多元，既有大体量的建筑、城市交通工具，也有小尺度的家具产品设计。在其工作室展示区也陈列着一些经典作品，如形状奇特的电梯按钮，可蜷缩成环形的滚动桥模型，还有深受大众喜爱的陀螺椅……虽然尺度大小不一，类型也不同，但这些设计作品都以赫斯维克工作室的设计理念一以贯之。

“我们认为，好的设计构思最重要是实践，让它为人们服务。小到一张桌子，大到城市建筑，我们的设计导向都是希望使用者能够开心，并在使用过程中激发人们的想象力。”除了建筑，赫斯维克工作室也通过其他不同尺度的设计作品，去链接更多的受众。“我们发现，用户使用我们设计的一些小尺度的作品后，其间产生的互动可能也会影响到我们在其他领域的设计。”张宇说。

在赫斯维克的创意世界里，桌子可以伸缩，椅子可以旋转，桥梁可以卷曲，建筑可以“毛茸茸”的，甚至赫斯维克伦敦工作室的边界都可以延伸到街面上。当你仰视赫斯维克的建筑时，可能会产生一种身在雕塑中的错觉，而在建筑中行走时，仿佛又在一座座无尽的桥梁中穿梭，赫斯维克工作室似乎做到了在艺术各个门类之间丝滑切换。这种打破庸常的设计规则产生的奇特效果，的确能萌生大众的好奇心。但这远远不够。

今年，托马斯·赫斯维克携着他的《人本主义》郑重其事地发起“让世界重新人本化”的倡议。书中不仅批评了百年来遍布世界各地的“无聊”建筑被快速建造起来又被更无聊的建筑所取代的巨大浪费现象，也正视了建筑所激发的个体情感，是一项至关重要的功能。就是说，赫斯维克工作室的作品除了建筑师都会关注的公共性、开放性，也具备了趣味性、情感价值。

“根据神经科学家的研究发现，千篇一律的建筑不仅不利于城市环境，对于人们的生活和情感需求也是都没有好处的。”张宇进一步说，“我们拒绝平庸，拒绝千篇一律的建筑，在我们的作品里，至少可以给大家提供与众不同的体验。”

Heatherwick Studio has a diverse portfolio of works, ranging from large-scaled architecture to public transport to furniture and product design. In the studio’s display area there are also some classic design, such as an unusual lift button, the rolling bridge model, and the popular spun chair...... Although the scales varies, these design are all consistent with Heatherwick studio’s design philosophy.

‘We believe the most important thing about a good design idea is to make it happen. From a table to a building, we want people to enjoy them and be inspired  during the process. Users experiences on small-scaled design may also influence our designs in other areas.’ Said Leo.

In the studio’s creative world, table can be expanded, chair can be rotated, bridges can be rolled, buildings can be ‘furry’, and even the boundary of their London studio can be extended to the street. When you look at Heatherwick’s buildings, you may have the illusion of being in a sculpture, and when you walk inside the building, it seems that you are travelling through a series of bridges, Heatherwick studio seems to be able to switch smoothly between the various disciplines of art. This kind of ability breaks the boundaries of design and intrigue the general public, but that’s not enough.

This year, Thomas Heatherwick, with his new book ‘Humanise’, launched an initiative to ‘re-humanise the world’. The book not only criticises the wastefulness of a century’s worth of ‘boring’ buildings around the world, which have been quickly built and replaced by even more boring ones, but promotes emotion as a function. This is why Heatherwick Studio’s works is always fun and joyful.

‘According to research by neuroscientists, boring architecture is not only detrimental to the urban environment, it negatively impacts people’s mental health.’ Leo continued, ‘We objected to mediocrity and banality, through our work we intend to provide a different experience to everyone.’

尽管2024年很快将过去，但接下来的好消息还是令人振奋。赫斯维克工作室的新作，西安生命之树和万象城预计将于2024年底开业，该项目也有望成为西安的新地标。

回顾赫斯维克工作室在中国的发展历程，张宇高度评价了中国市场的潜能。“中国在很多方面都在引领世界的潮流，比如新能源。中国的项目有许多可以发挥的空间，这种开放和包容激发了我们创作的动力。”对于中国设计市场的未来，张宇依旧乐观。“中国市场仍会有很多的机会，尤其是能改变世界、改变我们建筑环境的机会。我们也希望在这个过程中贡献自己的一份力量。”

（建筑时报  吴真平）

2024 will soon be over and there are exciting news from Heatherwick Studio. Their latest project, Xi’an CCBD and Xi’an Tree, are scheduled to be opened at the end of 2024, they are expected to become a new landmark in Xi’an.

Looking back at the studio’s development in China, Leo spoke highly of the potential of the Chinese market. ‘China is leading the world in many aspects, such as new energy. Projects in China have a lot of room for creative design , such openness and inclusiveness inspires our creativity.’ Leo remained optimistic about the future of the Chinese market. ‘There will still be many opportunities in China, especially for people who has the ambition to change the world and our built environment. We hope we can contribute our part in this process.’

(Wu Zhenping of Construction Times)