Phu Quoc, Vietnam
The Grand World Phu Quoc Bamboo Reception Hall by VTN Architects is a striking example of sustainable architecture, using bamboo to create an environmentally responsible, culturally significant, and visually impressive structure reflecting Vo Trong Nghia’s commitment to green design and pushes the boundaries of bamboo’s application in large-scale, modern architecture.
The client desired to make a bamboo structure that embodies the Vietnamese culture and becomes a symbol of the entire master-plan project, attracting tourists to Grand World Phu Quoc.
The scope of the project is massive, with a building area of 1,460 square meters.
The architects managed to satisfy the requirements of the client, creating a unique bamboo structure that embodies Vietnamese culture and is a symbol of Grand World Phu Quoc.
The lotus and the bronze drum, two traditional Vietnamese symbols are sculpted into the dense layers of the bamboo grid, expressing the traditional Vietnamese culture.
The project is energy efficient, using natural and low-cost sustainable material (in design and in construction), using only ropes and bamboo pins to connect bamboo culms together.
For all of the above facts, the project has been awarded a 2024 International Architecture Awards by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies.
No artificial air conditioning is used, and artificial lighting is minimized to only be used during nighttime. Vinpearl Project is, first and foremost, a pure bamboo structure with a massive amount of bamboo, counting 42,000 bamboo culms.
The construction process of bamboo itself is unique.
The architects have perfected this into a standard and the construction process here is a bit more advanced in terms of transportation (they had to move bamboo into an island) and precision (several systems together require utmost precision).
The joint system is challenging since it employs a lot of structural systems and the details of them meeting each other is challenging.
The structural system of Vinpearl Phu Quoc is hybrid. Vinpearl’s structural system combines Arches, Domes, and Grid systems together, which accumulates the team’s knowledge of using bamboo for various structural forms.
A hybrid system tests and unifies several different forms, creating a unique aesthetic for the project.
A cantilever edge requires the considerate use of cross bracing as secondary structural elements compared to main structural elements.
The spatial quality here is influenced by the hybrid structural systems. Here, even though the structure is complex with dense layers of systems interlocking each other, the space is very open and transparent.
The space is completely open because of the nature of the systems and the way the bamboo elements are joined together.
This is due to the nature of our simple joint system, with ropes and low-cost fixing elements.
The modular and bracing nature of our frames also increases the transparency of the structure.
The grid system allows natural ventilation through the grids.
The transparency of the space with the surrounding grid system, along with the arch pathway throughout the whole structure, links the inside and the outside.
The openness and transparency also allow natural lighting to come from the side and through the opening on the roof.
The light comes in beautifully, along with the natural color of bamboo, creating a warm and intimate atmosphere, even though the structure is very open in terms of airflow.
The space is also a combination of hard and soft spaces.
The grid is very systematic and precise, combined with soft bamboo arches and domes making people surprised whilst entering the space.
Project: Grandworld Bamboo Reception Hall
Architects: Vo Trong Nghia Co. Ltd. (VTN Architects)
Lead Architects: Vo Trong Nghia and Nguyen Tat Dat
Design Team: Nguyen Van An, Tu Minh Dong, Bui Quang Huy, Manh Trong Danh, and Thai Khac Phuc
Bamboo Contractor: VTN Architects
Client: Vingroup JSC.
Photographers: Hiroyuki Oki
