Photograph by Hufton + Crow
Beijing, China
2009 - 2012
SOHO China Ltd.
Galaxy SOHO
Photograph by Hufton + Crow
Photograph by Iwan Baan
Photograph by Iwan Baan
Photograph by Hufton + Crow
Photograph by Hufton + Crow
Photograph by Iwan Baan
Photograph by Iwan Baan
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The Galaxy SOHO project in central Beijing for SOHO China is a 330,000m2 office, retail and entertainment complex that is an integral part of the living city, inspired by the grand scale of Beijing. Its architecture is a composition of four continuous, flowing volumes that are set apart, fused or linked by stretched bridges. These volumes adapt to each other in all directions, generating a panoramic architecture without corners or abrupt transitions that break the fluidity of its formal composition.
The great interior courts of the project are a reflection of traditional Chinese architecture where courtyards create an internal world of continuous open spaces. Here, the architecture is no longer composed of rigid blocks, but instead comprised of volumes which coalesce to create a world of continuous mutual adaptation and fluid movement between each building. Shifting plateaus within the design impact upon each other to generate a deep sense of immersion and envelopment. As users enter deeper into the building, they discover intimate spaces that follow the same coherent formal logic of continuous curvelinearity.
The lower three levels of Galaxy SOHO house public facilities for retail and entertainment. The levels immediately above provide work spaces for clusters of innovative businesses. The top of the building is dedicated to bars, restaurants and cafés that offer views along one of the greatest avenues of the city.
Photograph by Iwan Baan
These different functions are interconnected through intimate interiors that are always linked with the city, helping to establish Galaxy SOHO as a major urban landmark for Beijing.
Galaxy Soho won the ‘Best Public Space Award’ from the China Design Association as well as a Silver Award from the Architectural Society of China. Receiving an RIBA International Award, Galaxy SOHO was also nominated for the prestigious RIBA Lubetkin Prize. The RIBA Jury citation: “Galaxy SOHO’s design is distinctly urban rather than suburban, civic as much as it is commercial. Its generous, interconnected public spaces flow into each other and have made Galaxy SOHO one of the city’s popular landmarks. By breaking the building’s mass into four flowing asymmetric domes of varying height, the design allows light into the deep-plan floor-plates. Each structure encloses a glazed atrium around which the internal circulation is arranged. Flowing bands of white aluminium and glass give the development an almost geological solidity and presence.”
Galaxy SOHO was the first of five successful collaborations between ZHA and SOHO China, totalling 1.5 million m2 (16 million square feet) of award-winning office and retail space. With all units in Galaxy SOHO sold before completion, Forbes Magazine detailed: “SOHO China Shares Rise On Profits of Completed ZHA Project: The company said its profit bulged by 172% from a year earlier to $1.7 billion in part on the completion of a high-profile project designed by ZHA.”
Offices
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Render by Hayes Davidson
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Render by Negativ
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Courtesy of Brick Visual
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Courtesy of ZHA
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Photograph by Hélène Binet
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Photograph by Hufton + Crow
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Photograph by Hufton + Crow
Generali Tower
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Courtesy of Soho China, photograph by Jerry Yin
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Photograph by Hélène Binet
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