Zaha Hadid Architects has always pushed the design boundaries, but lately, their structure proposals are otherworldly. Their new Hong Kong build will look like a Bauhinia bud, while a Honduras residential complex resembles a beachy space city. Now, the firm’s latest design will feature a terraced park into the side of a skyscraper at the Shenzhen Bay Super Headquarters Base.
While several architects will have structures within the business and financial center, Zaha Hadid Architects’ proposal was for Tower C. Their design features two all-glass towers with curved edges (typical of the firm’s aesthetic). What makes it even more unique is the terraced levels that flow from the ground-level civic plaza and adjacent park up several floors into the towers themselves, giving the appearance of a park built into the skyscraper.
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This modern park setup is meant to welcome “the public into the heart of the building” to relax in the urban garden. There are also “bridges that tie the towers together and give panoramic views of the city” and extensive bicycle parking and charging facilities to attract pedestrians.
The greenery will serve a health function as well. On all the terraced levels, aquaponics gardens and low-volatile organic compounds will naturally filter air pollutants. Plus, water-collection, recycling, and photovoltaics will harvest solar energy for the district. While eco-friendly designs are a pillar for the UK-based firm, it will also help the area's overall mission to reduce carbon emissions.
In addition to the futuristic park, the towers will feature naturally-lit office spaces free of columns, shopping, entertainment, dining, a hotel, a convention center, and exhibition galleries.
As the firm described in a release, “The design of Tower C integrates the city and nature within its central green axis with the transit orientated development (TOD) of Shenzhen’s new spine, creating a ‘superscape’ that will become a tower of the future within the Super Headquarters Base.”
