A new tower designed by Zaha Hadid Architects containing the world’s tallest atrium is nearly complete. 

The so-called Leeza SOHO tower straddles a new subway line in Beijing and was designed for developer SOHO China. The subway line running below the site bisects building, creating the footprint for the 623-foot-tall, full-height atrium.

As a result of this complex site arrangement, the curvaceous, black steel and glass tower appears to be two buildings in one. The tower’s twisting atrium reorients the nature of the space to better align it with the historic north-south axis that guides the development of Beijing’s urban plan. 

The tower is designed with certain elements of sustainability in mind and recently had its core-and-shell components certified to LEED Gold standards. The atrium’s double-insulated, unitized glass curtain wall, for example, cants inwardly from the extents of the building, creating a narrow cavity filled with ventilating registers that draw air into the atrium when necessary, according to the architects. The system allows for a greater degree of passive ventilation and cooling than might otherwise be the case. 

The tower is set to open to the public on November 19, 2019.