Courtesy of Flickr CC License / Sarmu

This week, with the help of our readers, our Architecture City Guide is headed to Beijing. Beijing has a range of architectural styles, but the three most prevalent are the traditional imperial style (the Forbidden City), the “Sino-Sov” style (boxy structures built between the 1950s and 70s), and lastly the explosion of a modern corporate style that is punctuated with Starchitect buildings like OMA’s CCTV TV Station HQ. We put together a list of 12 modern/contemporary buildings that we feel provides a good starting point. It is far from complete. There are dozens of other great buildings that are not our list, and we are looking to add to the list in the near future. Please add your favorites in the comment section below so we can add them on the second go around. Again thank you to all our readers who sent in their suggestions and photographs. The city guides would not be possible without your help.

To check out other cities visit our world map or our Architecture City Guide page.
The Architecture City Guide: Beijing list and corresponding map after the break.

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Courtesy of KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten

KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten were awarded first place in the international competition for the Qingdao Science and Technology City the company’s design for the approx. 600-hectare site in the north of the port city of China.  The primary objective of the project was to create a sustainable urban living space for the 100.000 inhabitants, in which a high quality of life with ecological equilibrium is achieved.  Come back after the break for more about this project. read more »

© KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten International GmbH

KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten International received first prize in the international competition for the new Beijing Science Center. The original building housing the Museum was opened in the same place in Beijing in 1988 and at the time was the first national science and technology museum in China.

The museum building will be constructed on behalf of the Beijing Association for Science and Technology, China. You can see more images and complete architect’s description after the break. read more »

© Shuhe Photography / KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten

Located on the northeast side of Tianjin University campus this 120 meter long, 58 meter wide building is s venue for both the university and national sporting events. Tianjin Sports Arena seats approximately 5,000 spectators, and represents an important link between the campus and downtown.

Architects: KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten
Location: Tianjin, China
Developer: Tianjin University Department of Campus Construction and Planning
Partner: Academy of Architectural Design and City Planning Tianjin University
Client: Tianjin University
Project Area: 13,835 sqm
Project Year: 2010
Photographs: Shuhe Photography / KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten

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At an official ceremony on March 23, 2010 the contract for the construction of the new Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation Headquarters was signed in Hanoi. The Cement Industry Corporation’s head office is the first project for Jürgen Engel’s architectural studio in Vietnam to be actually built. The new premises for the Vietnam Cement Industry Corporation, which comprise a five-storey pedestal building and an approx. 135-meter high tower emerged as the victor in a competition as early as April 2008.

More images after the break. read more »

Courtesy of KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten

Architects: KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten
Location: Nanjing, China
Developer: Jiangsu Province, represented by the Jiangsu Olympic Center, China
Partner Company: Nanjing Kingdom Architecture Design Co. Ltd., China
Structural Engineering: Breuninger Tragwerksplanung, Dr. Ulrich Breuninger
Site Area: 10,605 sqm
Project Area: 27,449 sqm
Project Year: 2006-2010
Photographs: Courtesy of KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten

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KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten was awarded first  prize for their proposal for the Beijing Patent Office.  Located in downtown Beijing, the site is near a new subway line and sits opposite the entrance hall of Caishikou Station.  The proposal integrates the Patent Office into the site’s sustainable traffic infrastructure.  The building is divided into a central hall, towers, bridges, open spaces and spacious rooftop gardens that creates an interconnected, communicative structure.   A surrounding strip embraces the individual parts of the building, extending from the roof to the façade, spanning open spaces, thereby giving the Beijing Patent Office a specific identity in the urban context.

More about the proposal and more images after the break. read more »

KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten recently designed a 77,000 square meter library extension to accommodate the existing National Library of Beijing.  The new addition will hold approximately 12 million books and be used by an estimated 12,000 people per day.

More about the library after the break. read more »