Landscape painting inspires new development
Designs have been unveiled for Henning Larsen’s project The Springs in Shanghai, which began construction in July this year. Completion is expected in 2020, providing a people-oriented, sustainable and innovative workspace for the Yangpu district - one of the city’s fastest growing neighbourhoods and education hubs. Aimed at creating future-thinking workspaces for creative industries, the three buildings of the masterplan are intended to provide flexible working areas and comfortable common space.
Inspired by shan shui, a traditional form of Chinese landscape painting, the terraces and balconies of the stepped buildings host lush gardens saturated with native vegetation, serving to extend the ground-level landscape upwards. The overall concept evokes the dramatic mountain landscapes found throughout rural China, with the towers creating a sheltered microclimate in the public square beneath. Designed in collaboration with landscape architects SLA, the plaza encourages natural pedestrian flow from all surrounding areas, inviting the community into a shared space characterised by gardens and public art.
The designers were careful to ensure that the buildings and vegetation were all arranged to improve air quality, reduce noise pollution and bring natural light into the space. Claude Bøjer Godefroy, Design Director and Partner at Henning Larsen, commented: “We understand sustainability in broad terms. It is important to offer people an environmental-friendly surrounding while at the same time developing a building that stages human interaction.” He went on to explain how this approach will appeal to the city’s general population, stating: “We wanted to create a protected environment in this city center that contributes to the potential for this development to become a new focus that generates and attracts public life in uptown Shanghai.”
Lucy Nordberg
TenderStream Head of Research
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