A solitary rough concrete monument rises from destruction to let people remember a past battle.

The Huangpi Dong combat site, located in Tiantai Town, 12km from Chishui City, is a well renowned “red tourism” spot in south-west China. At the very top of the mountain, reachable by a steep route through a bamboo forest, the concrete monument stands surrounded by a stunning view.

The memorial site is created by a succession of three different 'enclosed' spaces, which create a quiet and meditative atmosphere. A long narrow ramp, characterized by a U-shaped section, cuts the central area. The ramp's floor is made by a bloody shiny concrete, where shadows get deep and endless. The circular half-closed space around the tower is built on a lower and concave floor level. First the ramp, which breaks into the circle, and then this round lower space introduce the main element, the tower, which stands solitary at the top of the mountain. It is originated by a folded concrete movement, which creates a sharp and iconic light well once inside.

cast-in-concrete
Due to the project’s location in a remote mountainous area, a low budget and local workers' lack of experience, architects opted for self-compacting concrete which would lower manufacturing costs. This choice helped overcome the following issues:

• difficult transportation
• high temperatures and high humidity (corrosion-discoloration-mildew)
• finding materials in the local area
• maintenance problems

All the walls and the geometrical elements are made of cast-in-place concrete (wood formwork dimensions : 2.4m x 1.2m). Low cost materials and poor construction skills resulted in several damages during the formwork opening, like scars and pulling marks. All these different level of defects were deliberate results and emphasize the rough, harsh and lonely atmosphere of the memorial. The paving is also composed with a mixture of concrete pieces, made from Chishui local grit-stone (sandstone) infiltrated with red iron powder (single unit dimensions: 24cmx12cmx6cm).