China | Inhabitat

Circular Hakka Houses Create Self-Sustaining Communities

War and conflict often bring about the destruction of architecture, however these forces can also result in new constructions that define a cultural identity and place. Stressed by China’s growing population, the Hakka people have been confronted with armed warfare for local resources since the 17th century. To remedy their situation the Hakka began building massive structures that could not only stave off intruders, but would also form amazing self-sustaining micro-communities complete with food storage, space for livestock, living quarters, temples, armories and more.

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Guangzhou Revamped as New Sustainable Super City

by Bridgette Meinhold, 09/24/09

It’s an exciting time right now for Asia, which is expanding so quickly that whole cities are being designed, and existing cities have to be redesigned to accommodate all of this new development! Guangzhou, China’s 3rd largest city, is now joining the ranks of these foward-looking cities, and is getting a revamp to allow for more growth and at the same time make it more livable and sustainable. Some of the upgrades include mixed-use amenities like parks, commercial space, and increased transportation facilities that will make the city more cohesive. San Francisco-based Heller Manus Architects is responsible for the master plan of this new Southern axis to the city, which will tie into the recently designed Northern axis, also designed by Heller Manus.

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Dalian Shide: China’s Stunning New Sustainable Stadium

by Bridgette Meinhold, 09/16/09

Sports fans, get ready for a spectacular new experience – NBBJ recently revealed their design for China’s new Dalian Shide Stadium and it’s like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Built as though the stadium literally opened up from underground, two exterior walls of the structure are covered in grass and plants and the other two are open to connect the games with the city and allow glimpses of the intense action inside. Sustainability is a top priority and the design includes water recycling, daylighting, renewable energy and the beautiful and original living walls on the exterior.

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BIG Architects Unfold Origami-Skyscraper in Shenzhen China

by Bridgette Meinhold, 09/08/09

The very fabric of skyscrapers is being reinvented now as architects and engineers look to make these dense urban buildings more sustainable. One of the biggest dilemmas they face is allowing for visibility without overheating the interior from direct sunlight. BIG Architects recently came up with their solution to this issue, winning them the award to design their origami-folded skyscraper for the Shenzhen Energy Company. The facade is folded accordion-style, and shades the office complex from direct sunlight with integrated solar thermal panels, while simultaneously allowing for indirect light into the interior.

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Green Skyscrapers Unveiled for China’s Raffles City

Dutch architect Ben van Berkel of UNStudio recently unveiled a new set of elegantly twisting sustainable skyscrapers that will grace the skyline of Hangzou, China by 2012. Dubbed Raffles City, the design features two 60-story tall buildings set near the Qiangtan River in the captial city of Zhejiang province. The project will be a mixed-use development with office, retail, residential and hotel space and will be built according to LEED green building standards in hopes of achieving a Gold rating. On top of the green building techniques, the project aims for urban sustainability – it’s designed as a hub of activity, commerce and transportation meant to condense life into a smaller footprint.

Foshan Pearl: China’s Energy Efficient Gymnasium Completed

Although it seems like the media often regards China as the biggest greenwasher in the world, it is hard to dispute sustainable building when pure architectural facts and innovations are involved. The Foshan Pearl Gymnasium, China’s newest addition to its green array, is an excellent illustration of this point. Designed by Japan-based firm Mitsuru Man Senda and Environment Design Institute in direct response to the sub-tropical climate of the surrounding area, the vast athletic center examines the relationship between internal and external spaces and provides further support for China’s environmentally responsible attitude towards green building and design.

Passive (X) House for the Ordos 100 Village

The beautiful and expressive (X) House designed by Multiplicities is one of 100 entries that have been cleared for construction in Inner Mongolia as part of the Ordos 100 project. Conceptually designed as a white lung wrapped in a black skin, the house employs a series of barriers to filter air, light, and rain, and features a smart passive design that will allow it to weather the harsh climate of Inner Mongolia.

China’s Next Great Wall: An Interview With Simone Giostra

Earlier this year, Inhabitat covered GreenPIX , Simone Giostra’s groundbreaking Zero Energy Media Wall in Beijing. Recently ScribeMedia Arts & Culture released an excellent interview where the architect explains how he pitched the proposal to the client and developed the concept and installation. Giostra describes the GreenPIX wall as a form of “dynamic architecture” made of “hardware, software and content”.

Stunning New Terminal at Shenzen Bao’an International Airport

It’s not often that we get to talk about airports but there is a lot happening in the aviation industry. One landmark development is the proposed construction of a new terminal at Shenzen Bao’an International Airport in China. Positioned as a gateway to China and designed by architects Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas, the terminal will no doubt be a sleek transit destination. What has captured our attention is the incredible double skin canopy intended to let patterned natural light into the space, and significantly reduce energy consumption.

Ultra Motors Light Electric Vehicle Hits US this Summer

Following the success of Ultra Motor’s Light Electric Vehicle (LEV) in India and China, this eco and economical form of urban transport is set to go on sale in the U.S. this summer, and in Europe later this year. The 2008 electric bike, the “A2B”, offers the style of a bike with the power of an electric motor, offering ‘unassisted power’ for up to 20miles, with a top speed of 20mph/33kmph.

New Green Complex in China by Steven Holl

Architect Steven Holl always appeals to our sustainable side, capturing our imagination with beautiful designs that incorporate both social and environmental responsibility. His new design for a mixed use development in China is bringing a green sensibility to the skyline of Chengdu, the capital city of Sichuan. The ‘Sliced Porosity Block’ will house offices, apartments, retail, a hotel, cafes and restaurants within five towers and a multi-level plaza rivaling Rockefeller Center. This high-performance building will integrate green strategies in heating, cooling, lighting and materials to attain an LEED gold certification.

100 Architects to Design City

If you had to pick 100 architects to build a city, who would you choose? That’s the challenge posed by Jian Yuan Water Engineering, which has commissioned a plan to create one hundred villas in the city of Ordos, Inner Monglolia, China, comprised of 100 different design solutions by 100 up-and-coming architects. None other than Jacques Herzog of Herzog and De Meuron headed up the selection of emerging architectural talents from all over the world!

THE SONGJIANG SUSTAINABLE HOTEL IN CHINA

Near Shanghai, the Songjiang district has become a popular weekend destination for many tourists with its natural beauty and sprawling landscapes. And now the Songjiang Hotel might just become the newest and greenest attraction. While it may look a bit sci-fi, this hotel was designed for the real (green) world, with many sustainable features in mind.

MANUFACTURED LANDSCAPES: Our impact exposed

Edward Burtynsky’s stunning photographs manage to be both beautiful and simultaneously horrifying, and film director Jennifer Baichwal has managed to capture both the aesthetic and concept behind Burtynsky’s ground-breaking photography in her recently-debuted documentary film Manufactured Landscapes. The film was shown at the Seattle Film Festival, showcasing Edward Burtynsky’s photography through Baichwal’s aesthetic eye and and Peter Mettler’s artful cinematography. Burtynsky’s work highlights the effects of human interventions on the land, in such a stunning yet critical way that he was awarded the TED Prize for his art in 2005.

RIZHAO: China’s Solar-Powered Sunshine City

Rizhao 日照 means “sunshine” in Chinese, which is quite an appropriate moniker… Since 2001, Rizhao City (Shandong Province, China) officials have been educating the public and initiating new building regulations to promote the use of solar panels in their city. Traffic lights, street lamps and over 60,000 greenhouses are solar powered. Today, the city of nearly three million has over a half-million square meters of solar water heating panels—99% of households in the central districts use solar water heaters and more than 30% do so in the outlying villages.

TiANJIN’S ‘PILE OF BOXES’

The port city of Tianjin (Mainland China’s third largest city behind Shanghai and Beijing) is adding another skyscraper to its skyline. Construction on Atkins’ TEDA Landmark Towers (Tianjin Economic and Technological Development Area), nicknamed “the pile of boxes” by local residents, is set to be underway. The design features three towers made up of stacked and slightly rotated eight-story blocks. Each tower will use a geothermal heating/cooling system and feature sky-gardens in rotating corners of the glass blocks. The gardens will “light up the corners of each tower, creating an illusion of glowing lanterns rising up into the sky.” Each of the buildings will also be crowned with mesh-like blocks that house vertical wind-powered turbines to help supply electricity.

+ Atkins Design