Hasta La Ideas

News: as a Chinese company announces plans to build the world’s tallest skyscraper in just seven months, Beijing Design Week creative director Aric Chen says that contemporary China should “slow down” and look to “craft thinking” to tackle both small and large-scale design challenges the country is facing.

Speaking to Dezeen at the second annual event in the Chinese capital, Chen explained that the craft thinking theme of the festival was chosen “to expand the notion of craft beyond handicrafts and heritage to be more about authenticity, process and integrity – a constant awareness of what you’re doing, and how you’re doing it, no matter what it is that you’re doing.”

The Chinese design and manufacturing industry is often associated with mass production, so the design week organisers took the opportunity to showcase a creative ethos that is more quietly bubbling in Beijing.

Above: CONtradition papier-mâché furniture by MICROmacro lab

Chen says that although craft thinking “applies to teapots and furniture, it’s just as relevant to how you make a meal, how you build a city, even how you create a society,” adding: “We see craft thinking as being applicable to many of the larger challenges that China faces. It was our ambition to get people from all levels, from the general public to government officials, to think about it.”

Above: Geo City, Smart City exhibition at the China Millenium Monument Museum of Digital Art

This idea was explored across various platforms at the event, through projects presented by local designers such as hand-made papier-mâché furniture by design studio MICROmacro lab to the exhibition titled Geo City, Smart City, which focuses on how to use data visualization and other digital tools to design more humane, livable cities.

Chen also mentions that as China tends to be “very results oriented”, he hopes the event will inspire people to “think more carefully” about process rather than finished product.

See all our photos from Beijing Design Week in our Facebook album here.

Read more about Broad Sustainable Building’s plans to build a 220-storey pre-fabricated skyscraper in just seven months in our earlier story here and see all our stories about China here.

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Design Week creative director Aric Chen appeared first on Dezeen.

The 100-year-old university turned gallery bridges the gap between Chinese and Western contemporary art

Beyond the frenzied industrial development and Disneyfication of its historic alleyways, Beijing remains a city to discover. Fascinating hidden locations and scattered traces of the past are still preserved in the old capital— among them, the 100-year-old building behind the National Art Museum that once housed the former Sino-French…

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Silent films set to a background of live music bring culture for the China Tour

Located in the former Hong’en Daoist Temple in the heart of the old city, the Zajia Lab has become an epicenter of Beijing cultural life. In the past several months, it has welcomed some of Beijing’s most respected musicians and documentary filmmakers to the stage, so it was hardly…

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Eight huge wings resembling a cluster of duck feet form the roof of this theatre in Wuxi, to the west of Shanghai, designed by Finnish practice PES-Architects (+ slideshow).

Above image is by Pan Weijun

Wuxi Grand Theatre is situated on a manmade peninsula on Taihu Lake.

Above image is by Kari Palsila

The perforated aluminium panels on the roof are lit up by thousands of colour-changing LEDs.

Glowing columns are dotted around the main entrance square and continue inside the building where they support the roof of the central lobby.

The main auditorium is covered with 15,000 solid bamboo blocks designed to enhance the acoustics of the space.

Above image is by Kari Palsila

Around 20,000 custom-made glass bricks cover the curved wall of the auditorium in the lobby area overlooking the lake. “Finnish nature, lakes and ice” were the inspiration behind this part of the building, say the architects.

Above image is by Kari Palsila

The theatre has been shortlisted for an award at this year’s World Architecture Festival, which takes place from 3-5 October. The full shortlist is available to read on Dezeen.

See all our stories about theatres »
See all our stories about China »

Above image is by Kari Palsila

Photographs are by Jussi Tiainen except where otherwise stated.

Here’s some more information from the architects:

Wuxi Grand Theatre

In 2008, PES-Architects won the first prize in the invited international architectural competition for Wuxi Grand Theatre. The other competitors were established and well-known practices from Germany, France, Japan and Denmark. The main idea of Wuxi Grand Theatre is based on its location. The manmade peninsula on the northern shore area of Taihu Lake and the highway bridge nearby make this location comparable to that of Sydney Opera House.

Due to this location the building is an impressive landmark, rising up to a total height of 50 meters like a big sculpture from the terraced base. Its eight gigantic roof wings stretch far over the facades, giving the building a character of a butterfly, while protecting the building from the heat of the sun. The architectural concept is unique: inside the steel wings are thousands of LED lights, which make it possible to change the colour of the wings according to the character of the performances. This is possible, because the underside of the wings is covered by perforated aluminium panels.

Another special feature is the “forest” of 50 light columns, each 9 metres high, which start from the main entrance square, support the roof of the central lobby and continue outside of the lakeside entrance into the lake. There is a strong Chinese feature that runs throughout the whole building: the large scale use of bamboo which is both a traditional and a modern Chinese material.

Above image is by Martin Lukascyzk

Recently new methods for the production and use of bamboo have made it possible to cover the Main Opera Auditorium with over 15,000 solid bamboo blocks, all individually shaped according to acoustic needs and architectural image. There is also a material with a Finnish character: almost 20,000 specially designed glass bricks cover the curved wall of the opera auditorium in the lakeside lobby. Finnish nature, lakes and ice were the architectural inspiration.

Architecture and interior design: PES-Architects
Project: Wuxi Grand Theatre
Address: to the North of Jinshi Road, North bank of Lake Li, Taihu New City, Wuxi, P.R.China
Client: Office for the Important Urban Projects in Wuxi /Fan Chun Yu, Zhou Jian
User: Wuxi Culture and Art Administration Center
Floor area: 78 000 m2
Year of completion: 2012
Start of design: 2008
Competition: June 2008

Plan – click above for larger image

Architects:

Competition, 2 phases:
PES-Architects: Pekka Salminen and Tuomas Silvennoinen (main designers), Tristan Hughes, Jouni Rekola, Michael Bossert, Heikki Riitahuhta, Tomi Laine, Miguel Pereira, Emanuel Lopez, Elina Modeen, LaiLinLi, Fang Hai
UDG: Sun LiYang, Gu ZhiPeng, Guan XiaoJing

SD-, DD- and CD-phases:
PES-Architects: Pekka Salminen (project leader and chief designer), Martin Lukasczyk (project architect/ project manager), Elina Modeen (project manager China), LaiLinLi (project manager China), Fang Hai, Julia Hertell, Tristan Hughes, Vesa Hinkola, Willem-Anne van Bolderen, Miguel Pereira, Nicholas Capone, Marcelo Diez, Jani Koivula, Heikki Riitahuhta, Tomi Laine, Yang Yue
UDG: Zhang Min, Guan XiaoJing, Teng Xu

Main auditorium section – click above for larger image

Interior design: PES-Architects: Pekka Salminen, Martin Lukasczyk, Kai Lindvall, Satu Ristola

Landscape design Finland: Maisemasuunnittelu Hemgård: Gretel Hemgård, Vilja Larjosto
Landscape design China: Feiscape, Shanghai
Structural design Finland: Vahanen Group: Matti Haaramo
Structural design China: Shanghai Institute for Architectural Design and Research SIADR, Shanghai

HVAC design Finland: Climaconsult: Harri Ripatti
HVAC design China: SIADR, Shanghai
Lighting design Finland: Valoa Design: Roope Siiroinen, Marko Kuusisto
Lighting design China: Enjoy, Shanghai

Acoustic design Finland: Akukon & Kahle Acoustics: Henrik Möller, Ekhard Kahle, Thomas Wulfrank
Acoustic design China: Zhang Kuiseng, Shanghai
Stage design Finland: Akukon: Henrik Möller , Janne Auvinen
Stage design China: SBS, Beijing

Section – click above for larger image

Other participants:

Bamboo: Yrjö Kukkapuro, Fang Hai
Space programme: Finnish National Opera/ Timo Tuovila
Special glass bricks: Tapio Yli-Viikari and Kirsti Taiviola (Aalto University), Niu Fanzheng, Lu Ye
Glass column consulting: Glaston: Pekka Nieminen

Local partners:

Shanghai Institute of Architectural Design and Research Co. SIADR (DD and CD phases)
Gold Mantis, Suzhou (interior design DD and CD phases)
United Design Group Co.Ltd. UDG, Shanghai (competition phase and SD phase)

Material suppliers:

Bamboo interiors: Dasso Co, Hangzhou
Roof material: Rheinzink Co, Shanghai
Glass elevations: Pilkingtong Co, Shanghai
Glass Bricks: SIP Pengli Visual Mastermind & Design Co. Ltd.

Elevation – click above for larger image

Contractors:

Construction administration & client: Office for the Important Urban Projects in Wuxi/ Fan Chun Yu, Zhou Jian
Construction supervision: Zhejiang Tiangnan Project Management Co. Ltd
Main construction company: China Construction 3rd Engineering Bureau/ CSCEC
Steel structure construction: Jiangsu Huning Steel Mechanism Co. Ltd
MEP: China Construction Industrial Equipment Installation Co. Ltd
Stage machinery: SBS Bühnentechnik GmbH/ SBS Stage Equipment Technology (Hangzhou) Co. Ltd
Stage machinery supervision: ENFI
Acoustics: Huisitong Acoustic Technology Enineering Co. Ltd
Stage lighting: Hangzhou EKO Light
Facades: Wuxi Jingcheng Curtain Wall Engineering Co. Ltd
Interior construction: Gold Mantis, Decoration Co. Ltd. of China Construction 3rd Engineering Bureau, JiangSu XinHuaDong Construction Decoration Engineering Co. Ltd, Hua Ding Construction Decoration Engineering Co. Ltd
Landscape construction: Shanghai Landscape Construction & Design Co. Ltd, Yixing Hydo-Engineering Co. Ltd
Building automation: ZheDa Innovation Technology Co. Ltd

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by PES-Architects appeared first on Dezeen.

American architects Richard Meier & Partners have completed a Corian-clad club for private members in one of the largest development zones in China.

The OCT Shenzhen Clubhouse is located on an island within the 125-hectare OCT (Overseas Chinese Town) Harbour district in the west of the city, which has been masterplanned by urban designers SWA.

Like many of Meier’s buildings, the club has a predominantly white exterior and interior, which extends to the coated aluminium frames of the glazed walls.

The building complex has a radiating plan that fans out around the eastern edge of the island to accommodate a restaurant, an events space, private dining rooms and an exhibition gallery.

An adjoining block on the southern edge of the island houses a fitness centre and swimming pool.

Also underway nearby as part of the wider masterplan are a range of cultural and entertainment destinations including shopping centres, a museum and a theatre, plus parks and beaches.

Site plan – click above for larger image

Richard Meier & Partners also recently revealed plans for a 34-storey tower in Mexico City.

Ground floor plan – click above for larger image

See all our stories about Richard Meier »

Lower level plan – click above for larger image

Photography is by Roland Halbe.

Here’s some information from Richard Meier & Partners:

Richard Meier & Partners Completes First Project in China

Richard Meier & Partners is proud to announce the first completed project in Shenzhen, China. Sited on a prominent island in the middle of the OCT harbor lake, the new OCT Shenzhen Clubhouse will provide guests and members with a restaurant, private dining suites, a multi-purpose area, as well as recreational facilities, a fitness center and a small exhibition gallery.

Section – click above for larger image

The geometry of the Clubhouse follows a precise focal point from which “layers” of distinct spaces radiate and terminate in a sweeping curve that is seen from the Cultural and Entertainment Center across the water. At the south end of the island, linked to the Clubhouse by an outdoor pathway and garden, is the structure that houses the Indoor Pool and Fitness Center. The simple geometry of the Fitness Center contrasts with the adjacent Clubhouse in scale and form, providing a balance with the extroverted outline of the Clubhouse and stimulating the dialogue between the two structures.

West elevation – click above for larger image

The meandering paths through the gardens of the Clubhouse evoke a strong sense of the Chinese landscape philosophy. Various vistas, textures, flowers and settings offer an opportunity for solitude, as well as platforms to admire the surrounding views of the water and the harbor entertainment complexes beyond.

The firm’s guiding principles of metal panel and mastery of natural light define the building. The shift of natural light throughout the day animates the interior of the clubhouse revealing different spaces and the crisp surfaces of the OCT Shenzhen Clubhouse. The dramatic planes and natural light shape the space, mark the passage of time and the presence of the sky.

South elevation – click above for larger image

Richard Meier comments:
“We are very pleased to complete our first project in China and are honored to be part of the architecture that is being developed in Shenzhen. The OCT Clubhouse reflects a unique design while the architectural massing, the subtle folds and the modulated proportions are evocative of the firm’s guiding principles.

We hope that the OCT Clubhouse becomes a destination for public events and recreation, contributing to the success of the OCT Cultural and Entertainment Center.”

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by Richard Meier & Partners appeared first on Dezeen.