Tag: urbanus | ArchDaily

From Rapidity to Specificity: Multiple Dimensions of Shenzhen's Architectural Development

韩爽 - HAN Shuang — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 07:30:00 +0000

Shenzhen is China's first Special Economic Zone（SEZ), serving as a window for China's Reform and Opening-up and an emerging immigrant city. It has evolved into an influential, modern, and international metropolis, creating the world-renowned "Shenzhen Speed" and earning the reputation of the "City of Design." Architectural design stands as the most intuitive expression of Shenzhen's spirit of integration and innovation. Over the past decade (2015-2025), the development of urban architecture in Shenzhen has closely integrated with its open and inclusive urban character, ecological advantages of being nestled between mountains and the sea, and the local spirit of blending traditional culture with innovative technology, showcasing Shenzhen's unique charm and robust vitality across multiple dimensions.

Beijing Architecture City Guide: 28 Projects to Understand Contemporary Architecture in a 3,000-Year-Old City

韩爽 - HAN Shuang — Tue, 03 Dec 2024 04:00:00 +0000

Beijing, as the cultural and political center of China, embodies a rich architectural language that bridges history and modernity, tradition and innovation, showcasing the city's profound depth and diversity. From monumental landmarks like CITIC Tower and Daxing International Airport to the hidden courtyard renovations nestled within the city's historic hutongs; from the dramatic revitalization of the Shougang industrial site to the refined transformations of Baiziwan and Baitasi, Beijing's architectural achievements continue to captivate and inspire. Every space tells a unique story of the city, blending heritage with contemporary vibrancy.

17 Architectural Installations at the 2022 SZ-HK Urbanism\ Architecture Bi-City Biennale

Xiaohang Hou — Mon, 30 Jan 2023 04:00:00 +0000

The 9th edition of the Urbanism\Architecture Bi-City Biennale (UABB) of Shenzhen and Hong Kong opened on December 10, 2022. Curated by Lu Andong, Prince Gong, and Aric Chen, the exhibition features hundreds of artists, designers, and architects from fifteen countries. The exhibition will last for three months.

Where is the City Heading For? From Urban Design to Urban Life

Xiaohang Hou — Fri, 29 Jul 2022 04:00:00 +0000

In the 1960s, Jane Jacobs criticized modernist urban planning from the perspective of the integrated city. She believes that the purpose of urban renovation is to establish a better-integrated relationship between urban space and urban function by repairing the gap between them. Rather than "beautify" the urban environment.

How Can Architectural Spaces Be for Everyone?

Xiaohang Hou — Fri, 24 Jun 2022 04:00:00 +0000

Democracy’s essence is the people's self-government and autonomy based on their own rights, and its characteristics are demonstrated through equality and participation. If democracy means a more equitable way of public life in architecture, then, this way of life is dependent on the homogenization of the building's spatial structure, with open, transparent, and functionally diverse public spaces. It is also possible to argue that the birth, maintenance, and demise of democracy all occurred in public space.

How Can Greenhouse Design Change Architecture?

Eric Baldwin — Sun, 03 Apr 2022 07:30:00 +0000

Few structures are as elegant and ingenious as greenhouses. Largely built with simple and straightforward designs, these minimalist shelters create airy and light-filled spaces that shape indoor climate. Dedicated to the cultivation of plants and crops, they are diverse projects combining programs and systems to emphasize sustainability, education and conservation. At their heart, greenhouses are about experience and discovery.

A Healthcare Facility in a Former Mall in United States and a Future-Oriented Zoo in Canada: 8 Unbuilt Projects by Established Firms

Andreea Cutieru — Fri, 01 Apr 2022 07:30:00 +0000

This week's curated selection of Best Unbuilt Architecture highlights designs submitted by established architecture practices, featuring conceptual works, competition entries and projects in different stages of development. From the transformation of a former mall into a healthcare facility in the United States, a masterplan for the redevelopment of a zoo in Canada to a brewery regeneration in China, the following explores a variety of designs by global architecture offices.

12 Chinese Home Remodeling Ideas: Solutions to Housing Problems

Xiaohang Hou — Fri, 28 Jan 2022 04:00:00 +0000

In 2014, a home reconstruction program called "Dream home" was launched in China, inviting architects and interior designers to redesign some old houses that have problems. Some of these homes are oddly shaped, some are tiny, and yet others have extremely inadequate lighting. The design concepts conveyed by the designers together in this program are respect for people, understanding human relationships, and the definition of home. These renovations or reconstructions are not just home updates for clients, but a reinterpretation of "home" that gives them a new life with dignity.

“Every Generation Has a Responsibility to Design a Better Life”: In Conversation with Wang Hui of URBANUS

Vladimir Belogolovsky — Tue, 15 Sep 2020 03:30:00 +0000

After studying architecture at Tsinghua University in Beijing and Miami University in Oxford, Ohio Beijing-born and based architect Wang Hui (b. 1967) co-founded URBANUS in 1999 in Shenzhen with his partners Liu Xiaodu and Meng Yan. After his graduation in 1997, Wang Hui worked in New York until 2002, while also moonlighting for URBANUS remotely. The architect heads the company’s Beijing office, which he set up in 2003, overseeing projects in the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan triangle, the Yangtze River Delta region, and other parts of China.

ArchDaily China Building of the Year 2020 Awards: The Finalists

韩爽 — Wed, 15 Apr 2020 19:00:00 +0000

Following an exciting week of nominations, ArchDaily’s readers have evaluated over 800 projects and selected 10 finalists of the Building of the Year Award. Over 20,000 architects and enthusiasts participated in the nomination process, choosing projects that exemplify what it means to push architecture forward. These finalists are the buildings that have inspired ArchDaily readers the most.

Urban Design and Research of Nantou Old Town / MENG YAN | URBANUS

舒岳康 - SHU Yuekang — Sat, 18 Aug 2018 22:00:00 +0000

The Nantou Old Town in the city center of Shenzhen, China was founded as a city over 1,700 years ago starting from the Jin Dynasty. In the past century, the ancient town has gradually vanished, while the village was constantly expanding. The exacerbation of urbanization in Shenzhen has resulted in an intertwined layering with complex pattern of the historical town embedded in the urban village, which is again encircled by the city—“village in city, city in village”.

CGN Headquarters Building / MENG YAN | URBANUS

罗靖琳 - Jinglin Luo — Tue, 07 Aug 2018 22:00:00 +0000

After a decade of speedy developments, the structure of Shenzhen’s Central Business District (CBD) has begun to stabilize. However, every individual building is pursuing its own uniqueness and lacks sensitivity between urban dialogues. Therefore the urban center is losing its totality.

At the Chicago Architecture Biennial, Chinese Firms Look to Tradition to Write a New Chapter in Their Nation's Architectural History

Chloé Vadot — Wed, 20 Dec 2017 08:00:00 +0000

This article was originally published on the blog of the Chicago Architecture Biennial, the largest platform for contemporary architecture in North America. The 2017 Biennial, entitled Make New History, will be free and open to the public between September 16, 2017 and January 6, 2018.

Adjaye, OMA and ZHA Among 13 Shortlisted for 2017 "Design of the Year"

Patrick Lynch — Wed, 16 Aug 2017 11:25:00 +0000

The Design Museum in London has announced the shortlist projects in the running for the 2017 edition of their prestigious Beazley Design of the Year award. Now in its tenth year, the award was established to “celebrate design that promotes or delivers change, enables access, extends design practice or captures the spirit of the year.”

Chicago Architecture Biennial Announces List of 2017 Participants

Patrick Lynch — Mon, 06 Mar 2017 11:00:00 +0000

The Chicago Architecture Biennial has announced the list of participants invited to contribute to the event’s second edition, which will be held from September 16 to January 7, 2018 in Chicago. More than 100 architecture firms and artists have been selected by 2017 artistic directors Sharon Johnston and Mark Lee, founders of Los Angeles–based Johnston Marklee, to design exhibitions that will be displayed at the Chicago Cultural Center and throughout the city.

Look Inside a Collection of Beijing-Based Architecture Offices, Photographed by Marc Goodwin

AD Editorial Team — Fri, 20 Jan 2017 04:00:00 +0000

Architectural photographer Marc Goodwin has recently completed the third collection of his "ultra-marathon of photoshoots" – this time in Beijing. Following his unique insight into the spaces occupied by Nordic architectural offices (based in Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Helsinki) and his look at studios both large and small lived in by London-based practices, Goodwin has turned his lens to the burgeoning number of offices in the Chinese capital. From MAD Architects' magnificent old printing works to ZAO/standardarchitecture's purpose-built studio, here is a view into the places that architectural offices call home.

Videos: 16 Top Architects Discuss China's "Museum Boom"

Patrick Lynch — Mon, 26 Sep 2016 16:30:00 +0000

Currently on display at the Aedes Architecture Forum Berlin, "ZÀI XĪNG TǓ MÙ: Sixteen Chinese Museums, Fifteen Chinese Architects," takes an in-depth look at China’s recent museum boom and its effects on the socio-political and cultural landscape of modern China.

4 Reasons to Come to Finland this August

Tommi Lindh — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 18:00:00 +0000

Tommi Lindh, director of the Alvar Aalto Foundation, shares four exciting reasons to enjoy the architectural offerings of Finland this summer.