Located in the Xiaguan District in Nanjing, China, W2Y2L was required to design a high rise complex which included entertaining, sport, commercial and official parts. Hence the major concern of the design was how to merge this “huge complex” into the existing circumstances and get a brilliantly transitional connection with the landscape there. The distribution of architectural volumes in this design follows the idea of traditional Chinese Gardens, which transforms the elements of water, stones, hills, bridges and flowers into significant urban shapes animating and vitalizing the daily life of the entire district. More images and architects’ description after the break.
The site is on the south side of Jianning Road, in the area which is traditional and historical, meanwhile modern and , as well as surrounding by beautiful nature landscape scenery. The beautiful landscape scenery around drives the overall concept of the project by positioning the architectural parts like precious objects into an urban Chinese garden. The proposal therefore lifts up the ground surface and transforms it into a flexible and lively vertical highrise with landscape integrating all the service and leisure facilities to provide an attractive and continuously active support for this traditional and cultural site.
To the open space, the idea is to be “bottom elevated” to broaden the horizons, enhance ventilation, expand public space, and promote community interaction. Meanwhile by setting up “roof garden” to increase the accessibility and integration between the inner and outer space. Thus, an outstanding public space which allows citizens to have an unique and great spatial experience can be realized.
As the site is in the traditional area, which is very sensitive to avant-garde architecture, this drives W2Y2L to make the decision that controlling the upground mass of the highrise, by making the best use of underground space by putting some function units which don’t have a severe requirement of sunshine into underground. Besides, underground parking places will be provided.
Considering the different climate in Nanjing, this requires to pay a special attention on the facade during design period. In the podium part, the façade is in form of compound “green skin”. The continuity of the urban environment is a necessary urban ecological factor. Keeping all the existing the plants and use of green plants as a “skin material” in the façade in lower area can link the city and the building more closely and show a continuous three-dimensional urban landscape. As the height increases, the facade gradually transits to active solar panels. Furthermore the building integrated with solar photovoltaic systems. This kind of facade will not only allow the building facades to show the magnificent effect of changes in the actual situation, but also providing for the operation of building with clean energy and reflecting the low-carbon, environmentally friendly development ideas.
Team: Xinyu Wan, Dingliang Yang, Keming Wang, Jialong Lai and Jie Li
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- view from the gateway
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- view from the pavilion
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- view from the park
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- Courtesy of W2Y2L
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- Courtesy of W2Y2L
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- Courtesy of W2Y2L
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- Courtesy of W2Y2L
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- site plan
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- plans
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- sections
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- diagram 01
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- diagram 02
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- diagram 03
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- diagram 04
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- diagram 05
While this is a very interesting project in terms of the forms and fluid-like presence, it looks out of place to me in context of the other buildings.
On one of the images it shows a landscape view of the surroundings and it just seems out of place, almost like an amusement park at Epcot in Disney World, rather than a mixed use complex. :(
It is a good trying of this site. The design is trying to be a part of the landscape, to be a artificial mountain. I think if you want to have a such huge and tall building in such context, it is also very hard to play around with boxes.
Amazing project. It’s like OMA meets Zaha meets Bjarke Ingles. Love it!
你是认真的吗……
sigh…
Ha! This is funny.
Wasn’t this done by Zaha, Reiser+Umemoto or Eisenman in the late ’90′s (and many, many, many more wannabe’s in the 2000′s)?
Horrible design.
‘View form the park’ shows melting buildings.
I’m currently in China working and I like this design but it’s become pretty clear to me that the quality of construction just isn’t here yet, it might not be for a long long time. I’ve visited projects here that are of the same style and these buildings literally look like they could crumble at any moment.
The quality of the final product is so overbearingly terrible that the design is hard to appreciate.
Makes for a neat rendering I guess.
How will this kind of playtime on the CAD approach to design look in 20 years time, will the next generation look at things like this and wonder what were they smoking, or in the same way we look at flared trousers and hippy hair today, somehow I think the joke will wear off. Also I think it will probably be responsible for at least a few fatal crashes n the adjacent highway with drivers wondering what the…. before they tailgate the truck in front
are u kidding me?
are you joking??? are you serious MR architect.
I’d like to say, it’s very pretty. And why are you people so mean to a different mind? Compare to the regular building in the middle of the aerial view–the 3-storcke one, which I’ve heard that it was recently builded– I’d strongly appreciate this one. Anyway, it looks much more comfortable.
look gross