Sun, Sea and Stars Roof Penetrating
The city of Shenzhen is located in the Pearl River Delta on the coast of the South China Sea. Today it is already hard to believe that relatively recently – some 35 years ago Shenzhen was a small fishing village. The city’s vibrant quicksteping growth started after the assigning to Shenzhen the status of China’s first free economic zone in 1980. It continues to grow and today, including in height.
The project, designed by architects John Portman & Associates, is composed of a 356-key hotel, a residential tower and support amenities on a 21,174-square-meter site in the Bao’an Central Area business district in the booming Qianhai development zone of Shenzhen, China. The hotel tower is 26 stories tall, yet, at 99-meters tall, rises higher than the 29-story residential tower. There is a total built area of 84,600 square meters above grade.
The hotel entry fronts the museum park to the east. The shaping of the tower and podium inflect inward here, creating a grand canopied arrivals court. A separate VIP entry is accessed from the north into a garden auto court. The fully glazed exterior lobby wall visually links the hotel lobby to the museum park.
The hotel tower is linked to the complex’s podium via a two-story, 10-meter-high lobby space. Hotel functions, including the lobby bar, the three-meal restaurant and the reception area, activate the lobby. The typical guestroom floor consists of 22 hotel room modules, most often divided into 20 rooms and two suites per floor. Vertical circulation for the guestroom tower and the podium anchor each end of the lobby space. A ceremonial stair connects the lobby to the ballroom pre-function area.
The design for the hotel tower is centered on the concept of fluidity. The hotel, together with other project elements, wraps around an inner water-garden court, creating a total composition inspired by the undulation of water as a nod to the site’s location on Qianhai Bay.
Distinguished by its soft, sinuous, curvilinear forms and geometry, the character of the design evolves directly from its unique program, location and climate to encapsulate the spirit of this special place. The hotel tower, drop-shaped in plan, humanizes the built environment and creates an abundance of interplay with nature to deliver a sensory experience. A pleasant mix of open space and tree plantings offer visitors the choice of sun or shade. A sparkling water feature provides whispering white noise throughout the project.
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Materials provided by John Portman & Associates