Bumps / SAKO Architects

© Misae Hiromatsu
© Misae Hiromatsu

Architects: SAKO Architects
Location: Beijing,
Project Team: Keiichiro SAKO, Yoko FUJII, Hiroaki SAWAMURA, Jiye ZHANG
Lighting Design: Masahide Kakudate Lighting Architect & Associates
Site area: 17,949 sqm
Building area: 103,218 sqm
Project Year: 2006-2008
Photographs: Misae Hiromatsu

© Misae Hiromatsu © Misae Hiromatsu © Misae Hiromatsu © Misae Hiromatsu

‘BUMPS in Beijing’ is an integrated project with four residences as well as a commercial building. The traditional residence buildings in China are oriented south and north. With the increase in the density of the buildings, the traditional method causes buildings too close to each other and the rooms facing to the north can hardly get sunshine.

situation plan
situation plan
© Misae Hiromatsu
© Misae Hiromatsu

‘BUMPS in Beijing’ is rotated by 45 degrees from the north-south axis. This design can provide optimum sunshine for each building and also can short cut the way to the central business areas from different directions.

© Misae Hiromatsu
© Misae Hiromatsu
© Misae Hiromatsu
© Misae Hiromatsu

The residence buildings are 80 meters height. Every two floors are set as a unit. Every unit is staggered by 2 meters horizontally. Whole 80m’s building is repetitions of these units. The setback areas are used for terraces. Interlaced black and white units highlight the concave-convex façade and show a clear lineament of the building. All the windows are 1 meter square. Randomly placed windows weaken the existence of all pillars and beams. Therefore, the appearance of the buildings look like stacked by lots of small black and white ‘boxes’ together.

Cite: "Bumps / SAKO Architects" 29 Dec 2009. ArchDaily. Accessed 21 May 2013. <http://www.archdaily.com/44831>

15 comments

  2. Thumb up Thumb down -1

    is this some kind of a joke? i mean, people studied hard to do this?

    now it’s clear archdaily lacks any criteria at all for publishing their “stories”. what a shame what has this website turned into.

    Reply
  4. Thumb up Thumb down -3

    Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.

    Reply
  6. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    I think it looks cool and is striking. I’d say it improves its context. Just goes to show how subjective reactions to architecture can be.

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  7. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    reminds me of a grid system Stephen Hall likes using. I remain concerned about the interior spaces. Why no photos of the inside? Is it depressing or nice inside?

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  8. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    Nice concept but it doesn’t really intergrated in its nutural environment, especially for this location.

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  9. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    thumbs up for orientating this for maximum sunshine exposure… but is there any sun in Beijing with all the pollution??? I’m assuming these photos were taken after the government cloud seeded the sky…

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  11. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    Absolutely rubbish. An outcast to its surrounding, and what is the significance of white and black?

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  12. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    absolutely fantastic. How does this not fit the context? All I can see is high rise apartments of varying shades of grey (black and white mixed together,) Was the architect to design another insignificant simulacrum of its environment?

    Im sure its just as horrible as the rest of them on the inside..but at least it would entertain me for a few seconds before walking in.

    Fun fun fun…(remember fun?)

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  13. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    I definitely agree with dito! Its fun, its chaotic, after all thats what Beijing is ! like it!

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  14. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    maybe looks cool from far away,if you look once and quickly, but thats not what good architecture is. Would you want to visit it every day? I’d most likely go insane or become aggressive, I mean, even looking at it here for a few minutes is already annoying..

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  15. Thumb up Thumb down 0

    the shape is ok. a bit bold, but ok.. (agree, it is quite fun.)

    but the color… well my 1st reaction is: “ew..”
    i’m tempted to photoshop the color..

    Reply

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