SZ-ARCHITECTSSHANGHAI · TOKYO
JP/EN

Projects

A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore

Adaptive reuse / Culture

© Mata Okawa

Concept

From watching to welcoming.

A former prison guard tower becomes a small bookstore open to everyone. A building once defined by exclusion is reimagined as a welcoming place for its neighbourhood.

The existing structure was surveyed and reinforced, then extended with a suspended steel system. Bookshelves on four sides, opening windows and outdoor seating create different ways to spend time within 70 m².

Location
Northwest Gate, Hechai 1972, Hefei, Anhui Province, China
Area
70 m²
Status
Completed
Lead designers
Zhikun Zhang, Yue Liu
Design team
Yaning Shen, Deyong Kong
Structural / building services consultant
iStructure構造事務所（Xiaotian Yang, Kunying Wu, Zhe Wang）
Design period
Jun. 2024 – Apr. 2025
Completion
Dec. 2025
Construction company
Hefei Guyu Construction Decoration Engineering Co., Ltd.
Photographs
Mata Okawa, SZ-Architects
A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 1A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 2A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 3A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 4A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 5A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 6A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 7A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 8A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 9A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 10A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 11A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 12A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 13A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 14A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 15A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 16A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 17A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 18A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 19A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 20A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 21A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 22A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 23A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 24A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 25A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 26A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 27A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 28A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 29A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 30A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 31A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 32A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 33A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 34A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 35A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 36A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 37A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 38A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 39A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 40A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 41A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 42A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 43A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 44A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 45A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 46A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 47A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 48A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 49A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 50A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 51A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 52A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 53A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 54A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 55A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 56A Very Small 24-hour Bookstore — photograph 57