Steven Holl Architects gave a first glimpse into their second mixed-use project in Beijing. At 26,000m2, the geometric building will accommodate office and retail spaces in the city's Fengtai district.
SHA's main elements in their design were light, structure, open offices, urban porosity, and gardens/ecology. In response to code setback requirements, the project's north facade has distinctive curves slopes that create varying qualities of diffused natural light throughout the interior. On the south facade, sculpted cuts allow light into the office and retail spaces below ground level. The aluminum-painted concrete will be OSB formed, while the curves will have a smooth matte finish.
“The structure consists of four layers: a glass exterior laid over truss, secondary tubes, and an interior layer of translucent barrisol or newmat,” SHA says. The exterior concrete structure will help allow for a more flexible interior space. Open office space will occupy the top levels, and ground-level retail will be shaped around reflecting pools and gardens where people can gather. A completion date for the complex has not been announced.
Meanwhile, other ongoing projects from Steven Holl's practice include their winning proposal for University College Dublin's Future campus competition, their Kennedy Center expansion, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston's Glassell School of Art redevelopment.
7 Comments
How DOES he do it? (insert eye roll here)
They forgot to include the spiral in the model (best feature in the sketch).
The"arty" sketch, the opposite of BIG's simplistic diagram.
Sales tools. Like the busty blonde in all the ads. Everything reduced to an Instagram. If you can't get it in 4 seconds ...
Fantastic — the FLW of our time
Our time?
The dream that any neat-o sketch can literally be translated into a giant building. What a genius.
Should be "can be translated literally".
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