Qingdao Cemetery

A master plan for this cemetery located in Qingdao, China, was completed in 1999 in conjunction with Philips Wouri Long, Landscape Architects Inc. We proposed transforming the 42-acre sloping site into a series of formal and informal terraces and courts to provide over 300,000 interment spaces. Importantly, the design was based on leaving forty percent of the site in its natural state of pine forest and grasses. We also suggested the preservation of several stone buildings on the site which could serve both as sitting pavilions and locations for funerary rites.

As this cemetery was to be located next to the Laoshan National Park, canals and streams were introduced to allow the park’s waters to flow through the site, adding richness to the scheme. The Administrative Centre at the entrance was designed to frame a bamboo and water garden court for funerals and gatherings.