Client: Sunpowerl Development Group
Collaborators: ARTECH ARCHITECTS, ECADI
Constructor: SCG
Location: Shanghai JingAn, China
Site area: 12000㎡
Total construction area: 100000㎡
Design period: 2007-2010
Construction: 2009-2011

The project was executed under multiple Assignments for Design received in different stages: from the initial landscaping to the interior design of hallways, and then to the ensuing podium and main building facade works. In other words, we had to comply with the terms and conditions laid down by the previous design company while addressing the needs and problems in all dimensions of the existing proposal; these involved the client, urban-planning government agency and urban context. Faced with so many complicated restrictions, we submitted more than 10 proposals while engaging in a series of negotiations before finally reaching the conclusion that the concept of a “fluid landscape” should be extended to the facade. As the back set in the facade of the building cluster successfully maintains the fluid continuity, we ensure that the entrance for commercial activities will never be blocked by the main building. Not only has the project reinforced the urban fluidity on Nanjing W. Road, but its facade and architectural design also redirect the vibrancy of city life to the branch of Yuyuan Road. This helped to solve the greatest problem facing the designer (i.e., the masses of commercial and office facilities interfered with each other) and introduced a brand-new architectural style to urban Shanghai. Having originated from the fluid scenery in the landscape mimicry (i.e.,the project focus), the scenic design of the building transformed an ingenious arrangement of flooring, sculptures, greenery, lighting fixtures, scenic elements and the crowd’s traffic patterns into an image portraying a school of fish struggling upstream, hence the close relationships among landscape, building exterior and interior in the landscaping dimension. Thanks to the reworked grille sunshades and large window system, the facade of the main building increased in energy efficiency while lending a rhythmic ambiance to the interior, with a sequential window arrangement.

This project has received the gold certificate for green buildings from U.S.’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).
The design of the indoor lobby is in line with the fluid concept embedded in Chinese landscape painting, with the fluidity and artistic/cultural nature of space reinforced by continuous calligraphic strokes.
The estate rental & sale center on the 3rd floor is laid out to represent, in a limited display area, the designer’s philosophy behind this building: using a fluid combination of space and calligraphic strokes to underscore the cultural essence of Chinese landscape painting. Thanks to the multimedia display enabled by interactive digital technologies, the functional demand for estate rental & sale services are currently met with higher efficiently. All of the spatial objects in this project were produced with computer assisted modeling, and the models were converted into mechanically produced/ cut digital structures. Meanwhile, the hand-woven bamboo space symbolizes the mixture of traditional and contemporary craftsmanship.