American landscape architecture specialists the SWA Group have unveiled their latest offering in Asia; the Yongtai project is a residential scheme idyllically situated within Fuzhou's Red Cliff Scenic Area, bordering the Dazhang River in southeast China.
Focusing on the landscaping aspect of this complex created for the Fuzhou Yongtai Youxin Real Estate, the project spans a large-scale, 45-hectare area, surrounded by twelve small hills. The area also features a strong water element, as it acts as a watershed for the region.
The client's brief called for clusters of housing that would 'follow the natural site topography', explain the architects. The SWA Group obliged with their design blending seamlessly with the natural environment, adding lush greenery in-between the buildings.
An existing lake was preserved and became central to the plot, incorporated as a key public space for the residential complex. It acts as a focal point for the design, unifying the site. Public footpaths and sculptural bridges create a network of modern walkways and terraces that enhance the complex's circulation and lead residents towards the water. Wood, metal and concrete complement subtly the scheme's serene gardens.
Apart from the residential element (from high rises to smaller scale townhouses), the project also features a boutique hotel, a shopping area and clubhouses for residents.
This is not the only new offering from the prolific firm. Their Chongqing Dongyuan 1891 project near the Yangtze River was also recently completed, aiming to similarly incorporate the river's water element with the nearby Nan Mountain scenery to create a modern, yet sensitive, urban refuge.
The project spans a striking 45 hectares, including a strong water element and twelve small hills
An existing lake became central to the design, bringing all the elements together
Public footpaths and sculptural bridges create a network of modern walkways and terraces for the complex
The idyllic setting and thoughtful architecture encourages the residents to connect with the lake and the lush gardens
INFORMATION
For more information visit the SWA website
Photography: David Lloyd
-
Formafantasma’s biodiversity-boosting installation in a Perrier Jouët vineyard is cross-pollination at its bestFormafantasma and Perrier Jouët unveil the first project in their ‘Cohabitare’ initiative, ‘not only a work of art but also a contribution to the ecosystem’
-
Gingerbread City: architects sculpt London out of the season's favourite treatUntil December 29 in Chelsea, see London brought to life in a seasonal-appropriate medium by leading architects and designers
-
New Revox B77 MK III reel-to-reel tape recorder, and more cassette tape-based trickeryThe new Revox B77 MK III might be the ultimate analogue flex. In response, we’ve explored the outer reaches of cassette tape design
-
Tour Xi'an's remarkable new 'human-centred' shopping district with designer Thomas HeatherwickXi'an district by Heatherwick Studio, a 115,000 sq m retail development in the Chinese city, opens this winter. Thomas Heatherwick talks us through its making and ambition
-
A vibrant new waterfront park opens in San FranciscoA waterfront park by leading studio Scape at China Basin provides dynamic public spaces and coastal resilience for San Francisco's new district of Mission Rock
-
Raw, refined and dynamic: A-Cold-Wall*’s new Shanghai store is a fresh take on the industrial lookA-Cold-Wall* has a new flagship store in Shanghai, designed by architecture practice Hesselbrand to highlight positive spatial and material tensions
-
Sun Tower is a new Chinese cultural attraction that draws on the celestial cycleSun Tower, an imaginative cultural attraction by Open Architecture, draws on the natural cycle and has just opened in China's seaside town of Yantai
-
Light, nature and modernist architecture: welcome to the reimagined Longwood GardensLongwood Gardens and its modernist Roberto Burle Marx-designed greenhouse get a makeover by Weiss/Manfredi and Reed Hildebrand in the US
-
The Suzhou visitor centre in China is a perfect balance of contemporary innovation and cultural identityThe Suzhou visitor centre in China is designed by Tsing-Tien Making, a studio that designs to preserve cultural identity
-
Architectural Association's newest show uncovers the architectural legacies of rural China's lost generationThe Architectural Association’s ‘Ripple Ripple Rippling’ is not your typical architecture show, taking an anthropological look at the flux between rural and urban, and bringing a part of China to Bedford Square in London
-
Private museum Simple Design Archive is a ‘poetic sound sanctuary’ in ChinaSimple Design Archive, located in China’s Anhui province, is a private museum by HAS Design and Research, fostering a contemplative environment
