Hasta La Ideas

An observation cabin in Tibet has been named Dezeen Awards China 2024 architecture project of the year at a ceremony in Shanghai where all eight architecture winners were named.

The winners were awarded at the second annual Dezeen Awards China ceremony. Dezeen Awards China aims to shine a spotlight on the best Chinese architecture, interiors and design, providing international recognition from around the globe.

Shannan Beehive Observation Cabin crowned project of the year

Shannan Beehive Observation Cabin by Omno Lab won architecture project of the year. It was also named cultural project of the year.

“The black box design is well integrated into its surroundings, sparking curiosity and encouraging visitors to explore the beehive story inside,” said judge Sou Fujimoto.

“The use of treated wood stands out as a thoughtful choice, balancing nature, functionality, ecology, tradition, and craftsmanship.”

Other winners include Hangzhou-based architecture practice Line+ Studio for its woven timber tunnel and international studio Aedas for a skyscraper in Shenzhen.

Entries were scored by our judges including architects Fujimoto, Amanda Levete, Doreen Heng Liu, Li Hu and Huang Wenjing, and architectural theorist and critic Xiangning Li.

View the winning architecture projects on the Dezeen Awards China website or read below:

Architecture project of the year and cultural project of the year: Shannan Beehive Observation Cabin by Omno Lab

Situated amid the mountains in Shannan City in Tibet, the 60-year-old former orchard was transformed into a honey bee foraging area.

Omno Lab used black carbonised wood as the primary building material to resist the harsh conditions of the high-altitude plateau. The use of black colour blends the structure into the surrounding forest while forming a distinctive black landmark symbol.

“We designed it both for the bees that live here and for the visitors who set foot on this land because of their faith,” said Omno Lab.

“At the same time, this is also a rural revitalisation project – we hope that through such a project, we attract more tourists into Tibet, into Shannan, to learn about the people and natural heritage here, therefore bring some economic benefits to the park and nearby villagers.”

Read more about Shannan Beehive Observation Cabin ›

Residential project of the year: Courtyard Under Longan Trees by Spacework Architects

Located at the corner of the college campus, Spacework Architects’ designed the building around the natural distribution of the longan trees, to form a symbiotic relationship between the building and its environment.

“Our strategy is to go with the flow and let the natural distribution of preexisting trees inform the configuration of the building,” said Spacework Architects. “The resulting building volumes give shapes to multiple courtyards, and seemingly have become containers for the fruit trees.”

Read more about Courtyard Under Longan Trees by Spacework Architects ›

Workplace project of the year: Shenzhen Transsion Holdings Headquarters (T33 Full-Time Centre) by Aedas

As a local landmark at the heart of Liuxiandong HQ Base, the tower offers a three-dimensional green office environment, breaking the spatial barriers between office floors and providing more room for interaction and connection with nature.

“We have set up several sky gardens to reduce the impact of east-west sunlight on the building’s energy consumption,” said Aedas.

“To ensure that office workers on each floor see green garden spaces when they step out of the elevator, we have positioned the east-west gardens directly opposite the tower’s core,” it continued.

Read more about Shenzhen Transsion Holdings Headquarters (T33 Full-Time Centre) by Aedas ›

Civic project of the year: Shenzhen Energy Ring by Schmidt Hammer Lassen

This distinctive power plant is one of Shenzhen’s largest waste incineration facilities and addresses critical environmental challenges such as minimising energy consumption, water usage and carbon emissions.

“In line with the client’s initiative to ‘build a factory, return a park,’ this project demonstrates an innovative integration of large-scale industrial functionality with public educational areas, aiming to foster a harmonious dialogue between the waste treatment facility and the surrounding community,” said Schmidt Hammer Lassen.

Read more about Shenzhen Energy Ring by Schmidt Hammer Lassen ›

Landscape and urban project project of the year: Woven Passage to Cloudy Peaks by Line+ Studio

Located in Xiayanbei Village, Zhejiang Province, the tunnel frames the landscape as a gateway and protects the road from further erosion during heavy rainfall.

“We transform a typical entrance into a unique experiential journey,” said Line+. “Also, the site was previously split by road construction. We pose risks of soil erosion and landslides, making the tunnel a vital infrastructure for ecological restoration.”

Read more about Woven Passage to Cloudy Peaks by Line+ Studio ›

Rebirth project of the year: Staircase Space – Old Factory Space, New Book Cafe by Suzao Architects

Located in the M60 creative campus in Kunming, the studio transformed the 12-metre factory into a cultural space with a bookstore and leisure facilities, whilst retaining the original architectural features.

“We designed a giant bookshelf using an entire wall of the factory building, making it the most core visual focus in the space and carefully designed the traffic walkways in the space, shuttling between the bookshelves on each floor and various functional areas in the space,” said Suzao Architects.

Read more about Staircase Space – Old Factory Space, New Book Cafe by Suzao Architects ›

Mixed-use project of the year: Flying Carpet by GN Architects

The parent-child activity centre in Ado Town has various functions under a sweeping roof, with the gaps between them forming public spaces.

“We designed a rolled-up roof, under which are four independent functional bodies: a multi-functional hall, a cinema, stairs, and a cafe,” said GN Architects.

“The roof is the main visual part of the facade, weakening other elements and making the facade effects completely different during the day and at night.”

Read more about Flying Carpet by GN Architects ›

Hospitality project of the year: Guangzhou Ji Yun Yao Resort by Line+ Studio

Line+ reconstructed the settlement by renovating and rebuilding the existing structures with guest rooms arranged at various heights to offer diverse landscape views.

“The aim was to revive the original village using modern profiles combined with local rammed earth materials,” said Line+.

“We used sloping and steep roofs for 18 guest rooms. And they are arranged organically according to landscape orientation and terrain conditions, interconnected by variously scaled landscape platforms,” it continued.

Read more about Guangzhou Ji Yun Yao Resort by Line+ Studio ›

Dezeen Awards China 2024 in partnership with Bentley

Dezeen Awards China is the ultimate accolade for architects and designers across China. The second edition of the annual awards programme is in partnership with Bentley as part of a wider collaboration to inspire, support and champion design excellence and showcase innovation that creates a better and more sustainable world. This ambition complements Bentley’s architecture and design business initiatives, including the Bentley Home range of furnishings and real estate projects around the world.

The post Shannan Beehive Observation Cabin named best building at Dezeen Awards China 2024 appeared first on Dezeen.

Polycycle Illumination has been named Dezeen Awards China 2024 design project of the year at a ceremony in Shanghai where all four design category winners were announced.

The four winners named at the Dezeen Awards China ceremony included designs by Goodo Design, Studio Ololoo and Momant Studio.

Polycycle Illumination crowned design project of the year

A series of jellyfish-shaped lamps by Xuanhao won the prestigious design project of the year award and was also named lighting design of the year.

The judges praised the project for its ingenious structure and modularity.

“The feasibility of industrial scalability is an important factor to determine the future of upcycling plastic waste,” said judge Mario Tsai. “Polycycle Illumination seems to find the right balance to secure a commercial value.”

Other winners included a wooden stool with an inflatable cushion, a fetal movement and heart monitor and an installation crafted from golden tree trunks and veneer.

The shortlisted design projects were scored by our design panel, which included art journalist Cao Dan, designer Tsai, artist Qiong Er Jiang, curator Paola Antonelli and industrial designer Paul Priestman.

View the winning design projects on the Dezeen Awards China website or read below:

Design project of the year and lighting design of the year: Polycycle Illumination by Xuanhao Li

Xuanhao Li’s Polycycle Illumination is a sustainable lamp collection upcycled from plastic film waste through CNC fabrication and craftsmanship.

Through computational design, digital fabrication and crafts, Polycycle Illumination repurposes discarded polyethylene plastic packaging into elegant jellyfish-shaped table lamps, saving them from ending up in landfills or oceans.

The bio-inspired silhouettes pay homage to the marine ecosystem and revive plastic waste with a captivating glow through the interwoven textures.

Read more about Polycycle Illumination by Xuanhao Li ›

Product design of the year: Mom’s Hug – Fetal Monitor by Goodo Design

Created by Goodo Design, the monitor enables non-medical users to easily obtain precise fetal movement data in daily environments like at home or at work.

Replacing the currently-used stethoscope technology, Mom’s Hug is the first of its kind in the industry to provide accurate monitoring while remaining convenient and budget-friendly.

“This is the first fetal movement and heart rate monitor in the industry that uses a pressure sensor combined with Doppler fetal heart rate measurement to provide accurate fetal movement and heart rate data,” said Goodo Design.

Read more about Mom’s Hug – Fetal Monitor by Goodo Design ›

Furniture design of the year: Bubble Stool by Studio Ololoo

Crafted from ash wood and recyclable TPU airbags in a small factory in Ningbo, the stool exemplifies the studio’s exploration of using pressed multiform airbags to create designs for different user scenarios.

“The form of the stool iss inspired by a children’s game of blowing bubbles, like a steel ring,” said Studio Ololoo.

“The inflated TPU airbag is fixed in the seat and is squeezed by the irregular wooden ring to form an organic bubble-shaped seat cushion.”

Read more about Bubble Stool by Studio Ololoo ›

Craft and collectible design of the year: Treehouse Symphony by Momant Studio

Treehouse Symphony is a wooden sculpture informed by a treehouse with vibrant golden tree trunks and veneers that embody the vitality of nature.

Inspired by treehouses that merge art and nature, the design evokes the viewer’s memories of childhood adventures and the awareness of nature and its protection.

Read more about Treehouse symphony by Momant Studio ›

Dezeen Awards China 2024 in partnership with Bentley

Dezeen Awards China is the ultimate accolade for architects and designers across China. The second edition of the annual awards programme is in partnership with Bentley as part of a wider collaboration to inspire, support and champion design excellence and showcase innovation that creates a better and more sustainable world. This ambition complements Bentley’s architecture and design business initiatives, including the Bentley Home range of furnishings and real estate projects around the world.

The post Jellyfish-shaped lamps named design project of the year at Dezeen Awards China 2024 appeared first on Dezeen.

Tech mogul Elon Musk has claimed that The Boring Company could create a transatlantic tunnel between New York and London for 1,000 times less money than previously estimated.

Musk made the claim in response to a post on the social media platform X, which he owns, by news platform Daily Loud that contained a rendering of a the tunnel with the headline: “Proposed $20 Trillion tunnel would get you from New York to London in 54 minutes.”

In response Musk said: “The @boringcompany could do it for 1000X less money.”

The @boringcompany could do it for 1000X less money https://t.co/IXJY63xUCo

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 10, 2024

Elon Musk claimed he could create the transatlantic tunnel for around $20 billion

This estimation would put the price of the transatlantic tunnel at around $20 billion (£15.7 billion).

Daily Loud was referencing a figure that has recently appeared in multiple news outlets including Newsweek and CNN, although no scientific or engineering source was cited.

Tunnel would be world’s longest by over 3,000 miles

According to Forbes, in the early 2000s American researchers at MIT Ernst Frankel and Frank Davidson proposed a maglev vacuum train line that would cross the 3,500-mile distance between the metropolises and allow for speeds of up to 1,200 miles per hour.

If built, the 3,500-mile transatlantic tunnel would be the longest in the world by a huge distance. The current tunnel with the longest underwater section is the 31-mile-long Channel Tunnel, which connects the UK and France.

Opened in 1994, the Channel Tunnel cost £9 billion ($11.4 billion) to build, which would be around 18.5 billion ($23.4 billion) today.

Musk first announced his intention to develop “supersonic” lines, called hyperloops, in 2013, proposing a line between the California cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco that would carry small carriages at 700 miles per hour.

Since then, a number of other firms have tried to execute the plan to carry people in vacuum-sealed tubes.

In 2020, transportation company Virgin Hyperloop, owned by billionaire Richard Branson, travelled 500 meters in a BIG-designed pod and reached speeds of 100 miles per hour.

Numerous nations developing hyperloops

So far, the longest hyperloop journey carried out was earlier this year in Switzerland, where a team of scientists were able to run a pod for 11.8 kilometres with a top speed of 25 miles per hour.

A number of nations have also speculated on installing the technology – both India and Mexico have put forward proposals to connect major metropolitan centres with the technology.

Musk founded The Boring Company in 2016 to carry out some of these infrastructure projects, and in 2022 announced a proposal to build a tunnel for Teslas to drive underground and bypass traffic in Miami. This, and other similar projects proposed for Los Angeles and New York, have not moved forward.

A Wall Street Journal report claimed that Musk and The Boring Company had “backed out” on multiple cities to whom Musk’s company sent proposals.

In 2022, the New York Times cast doubt on the viability of these projects going forward. The main problems continue to be funding and questions of integration into the existing infrastructure systems.

“Some industry observers believe that regulatory, financial and political hurdles may doom hyperloop as a viable high-speed alternative to air travel,” said the New York Times.

The photography is courtesy of Shutterstock.

The post Elon Musk claims Boring Company could build transatlantic tunnel for around $20 billion appeared first on Dezeen.

Chinese studio People’s Architecture Office has converted an old porcelain factory in Jingdezhen into workshops and a gallery using colourful steel and glass extensions.

Named Porcelain Factory Plug-in Revival, the project is located alongside the Imperial Kiln Ruins and Imperial Kiln Museum in a historical part of the city dubbed the porcelain capital of the world.

Beijing-based People’s Architecture Office‘s (PAO) design opens up the previously private site to expand the area’s offering for both locals and tourists.

Using a strategy that the studio calls “plug-in architecture”, the site’s traditional brick and timber structures have been extended and interlinked with contemporary elements in glass and blue and orange steel.

“By using plug-in architecture, the design addresses contemporary needs within a heritage context, adding functional spaces that support modern artistic practices and community interaction,” PAO principal James Shen told Dezeen.

“This approach enables modern interventions to coexist with traditional elements, creating a space that harmonies old and new as a form of urban regeneration,” he added.

At the centre of the site next to a large brick chimney, PAO has encased the factory’s tallest structure in a glazed shell.

This aims to better connect its internal exhibition spaces and cafe to a surrounding public square, created by uniting two previously isolated courtyards.

This central form is topped by an oversized roof described by Shen as the project’s “contemporary focal point”. It is finished with clay tiles on the exterior and faceted, slatted wood ceilings above the internal spaces.

“The three-story glass building, a key intervention, anchors the public square and introduces openness and transparency, visually harmonising with the surrounding traditional architecture,” he explained.

“The balance between modern and traditional is emphasised by the roof’s ‘floating’ quality over the transparent enclosure, creating a memorable architectural feature that elegantly bridges the distinction between the past and the present,” Shen added.

Around this central structure are the restored porcelain workshops, of which the existing brick and timber structures have been restored and extended by PAO with a series of prefabricated cuboid modules, staircases and walkways.

Each metal-clad module has allowed the insertion of modern facilities into the old buildings, including a kitchen, bathrooms, meeting spaces and sleeping areas, while minimising disruption to their existing fabric.

PAO was founded in Beijing in 2010 by Shen, He Zhe, and Zang Feng. Previous projects by the studio include an amoeba-shaped public restroom in Manshan Park and the renovation of a school in Shenzhen with blue-toned metalwork.

The photography is by Zhu Yumeng. 

The post People’s Architecture Office transforms Chinese porcelain factory using “plug-in architecture” appeared first on Dezeen.

An oversized, bamboo-clad roof connects the spaces at the Bamboo Gate community centre in the Mabi Reconstruction Disaster Prevention Park, Japan, designed by architecture studio Kengo Kuma and Associates.

Designed to frame views of the surroundings, the building has two volumes separated by an opening to give it a form resembling a gateway.

Named Bamboo Gate, the community centre is located in the town of Mabi in Okayama Prefecture, which was damaged by flooding in 2018.

The building and surrounding Mabi Reconstruction Disaster Prevention Park were designed by Kengo Kuma and Associates to provide a disaster-resilient public space for the town.

One side of the building, which is clad almost entirely in bamboo contains an emergency storage warehouse.

The sculptural roof curves out from this storage warehouse to form a column at the centre of the community centre, which has glass walls and will be used as an events space.

The roof overhangs both volumes to shade the outdoor space around the building.

“The large bamboo eaves that extend out into the surroundings are opened as a breezeway to protect people from the rain and sunlight,” said Kengo Kuma and Associates.

A paved path forms an axis through the opening in Bamboo Gate, designed to connect the river, city and surrounding mountains.

“A large hole through the centre of the Bamboo Gate is made of bamboo, a local speciality of Mabi,” said Kengo Kuma and Associates.

“This opening receives the axis from the city and the river, and through this opening, the bustle of the city and the beautiful nature of the Oda River and mountains are connected.”

Japanese architect Kengo Kuma founded his eponymous studio in 1990. Today, it has offices in Tokyo, Paris, Beijing, Shanghai and Seoul.

Other projects recently completed by the studio include a sculptural clay museum in China clad in ceramic tiles and the Saint-Denis Pleyel Station in Paris, which was cloaked in wooden louvres.

The images are courtesy of Kengo Kuma and Associates.

The post Kengo Kuma tops sculptural community centre with swooping bamboo roof appeared first on Dezeen.