OCT Grid Space is located on the banks of Qijiang River, the "mother river" of Zhongshan, with a total area of 857.11 square meters. It includes Xiangshan Study, communication area, exhibition area, etc. It carries comprehensive functions such as cultural communication, art salon, nature education, leisure and entertainment, and Cruise terminal. It is open to the Residents Complimentary on a daily basis.
The OCT Grid Space was formerly two idle old industrial buildings. The design team retained the original structural framework and transformed it in a "reduction" way to form a "grid garden" that absorbs the scenery on both sides of the Qijiang River. The outline of the building vaguely dialogues with the intention of reeds on the river bank, echoing the arch lines of the "Sun Yat-sen's Former Residence". The dock is placed with wooden boats handmade by intangible cultural heritage craftsmen, which reminds people of the old days of Zhongshan's "Shiqi Evening Ferry", adding a unique blend of natural interest and local humanities to the industrialized grid space.
The Xiangshan Study in Building A features a hollow design. Floor-to-ceiling glass allows natural light to penetrate the study. It has a built-in 6-meter-high book wall and a stepped reading area that extends to the river landscape, creating a beautiful artistic conception of "lowering your head to appreciate the fragrance of thousands of books, and looking up to see the blue water and blue sky, with egrets flying in groups". The multifunctional reading area on the second floor is equipped with a new Chinese-style simple desk. The light brown bookshelf has a slightly simple and natural beauty. Outside the window is the Xiangshan (North) Bund, which integrates the customs of various countries. It is fascinating in the first-line waterfront scenery, as if starting a journey beyond time and space. The "Nature Classroom" exhibition area on the third floor is an environmental education space with the theme of Zhongshan telling the ecological story of Qijiang River. A variety of exquisite animal and plant specimens and nature notes present the beauty of Zhongshan ecology for you.
The art exhibition area in Building B often invites well-known domestic artists to create contemporary art exhibitions in combination with Zhongshan's local culture, such as "Crossing the Sea•Time|Zhongshan on the River and Ferry", "THE 3", "Migration|Memory Archaeology from Zhongshan to the Pearl River Delta Waters", etc., and regularly conducts parent-child activities such as nature classes and bird watching studies outdoors. In addition, cultural activities such as music live shows, riverside markets, and Xiangshan talks have become "a good place for weekend leisure" in the minds of Zhongshan Residents.
This abandoned factory building, once forgotten by the hustle and bustle of the city, is now back in the public eye, with more than 100,000 visitors. In January 2022, it was successfully selected as one of the "Second Batch of Guangdong Province's Industrial Tourism Premium Routes" jointly evaluated by the Guangdong Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism and the Guangdong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology, and was included in "Architecture China" as an excellent Chinese architectural case.
In the future, OCT will introduce more domestic high-quality cultural and tourism resources to Grid Space, create diversified public cultural life scenes, and create a new high-quality life experience for the public that integrates diverse cultural creativity with the natural ecological environment.
