Ascentage Pharma

Ascentage Pharma

Design: 2018-2019
Construction: 2019-2022

Ascentage Pharmaceutical Headquarters is a new 147,000m2 modern R&D and manufacturing complex in Suzhou for a young Hong Kong listed pharmaceutical company. Symbolizing the aspirations of Ascentage’s culture whose cutting-edge research in Biotechnology has developed promising new cancer drugs to improve the lifestyles of a future generation afflicted with diseases once thought untreatable or incurable; the state-of-the-art campus was realized using some of the most technologically advanced digital design and fabrication tools.

Open, clean, and modern, the public and employee programmed volumes of the new campus’ seven buildings are discrete curvilinear shapes, soft in nature, elevated above a glass base in a floating composition over a black granite clad reflecting pool facing the main Xinqing Road. The 80m tall R&D and Administration Building, the new iconic symbol of Ascentage sits proudly at the intersection of the busy southwest corner of the site on Xinqing Road, in proximity to a new mass transit subway station.

Inspired by the benzene ring of the chemical formula used to annotate the planar bonds of the six carbon and hydrogen molecules, each building volume’s façade is carefully designed using the benzene ring hexagon as the source form, which is then engineered to fold parametrically bonding around the seven different building volumes. These parametrically modeled facades using adaptive BIM families were then digitally fabricated using Ultra High Strength Concrete panels and anodized aluminum nodes and extrusions affording distinct façade designs for optimal balance of visual transparency and privacy.

Together with new high-tech research labs and an expansive advanced manufacturing fit out bathed with ample diffuse natural light filtering from its translucent roof, the distinctly programmed composition of the projects’ buildings on the 60,870m2 site, create a singular campus and new identity for Ascentage’s promising future.

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Anji Play

Design: 2016-2020
Construction: 2018-2022

Nestled in the footsteps of the Yuhua Jinhua mountains in the countryside of Anji county is the new AnjiPlay Kindergarten and International Child Care Center. Anchoring the education complex comprised of research and teaching centers, an AnjiPlay Museum, convention center and dorms, is the AnjiPlay early childhood kindergarten, the flagship of educator, Ms. Cheng Xueqin’s self-determinate, play based curriculum schools for 3 to 6 year olds.

Love, risk, joy, engagement, reflection are the guiding principles of AnjiPlay. Maximizing the opportunities for imaginative play and contact with natural elements and phenomena requires a predominant presence of nature embracing a humble architecture. Earth, water, sky, trees, bamboo, hills, tunnels and ditches are among the integrated environmental elements that engage children in endless exploration, allowing each child to take ownership of discovery and learning through “True Play.”

Architecture, is one of the environmental elements that affords complexity in terms of spatial experience and shelter. With the overlapping blending of the natural and architectural elements, new opportunities, phenomena and experiences are constantly created for play and learning. AnjiPlay architecture though must be in its elemental form, simple enough to allow for phenomena to be experienced, not dictated, trusting and engaging children in learning from their natural environment.

The Anji Campus design is the result of experimental play, following the manner of the 21st century early childhood education movement. Founded by Cheng Xueqin, Anji Play begins with the introduction of “large, minimally structured materials within an open-ended, minimally structured environment” and the right of self-determined play. In exercising these rights to space, freedom, materials and time, the children develop play intentions that manifest themselves in “high degrees of complexity.”

In the same manner that the children, left to their own devices, seek to “eliminate factors that stifle play intentions,” so does the architecture of Anji Campus. The prerequisites to the design process derive from the fundamentals of Cheng Xueqin’s philosophy: children have a right of “access to open-ended environments that do not determine or direct the experience or outcome of play… environments that are carefully designed to maximize discovery and problem solving but not lead to specific outcomes or insights…that allow children to challenge themselves at their own level of self-determined risk…[and] that provide access to the natural world as much as possible.”

In fulfillment of these rights is a neutral architecture with the ecology in the foreground, and a fluidity between the spaces. Located in Anji County in the Zhejiang province of China, the site is diverse in its topography and natural elements.

Within the traditional context analysis arises a natural playscape of five clusters, with a ramp of Anji bamboo connecting. The five clusters dissolve into sixteen homerooms, sharing a common building block but remaining unique in form. The homeroom becomes not only an uninhibited space to play and learn and grow, but a home to its children.

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Longleaf Art Park

Design: 2021/2024 Construction: 2024/ongoing

Situated in the Watersound Origins development, the 15.5-acre Longleaf Art Park will be a vibrant addition to Walton County, Florida, a new focal point of cultural, educational, and recreational experiences. Anchored by a purpose-built pavilion housing the 217’ long Passage of Time sculpture, a significant masterwork from world renowned artist Richard Serra, the park is designed to be a community hub offering diverse opportunities for enrichment and enjoyment.

Merging with the surrounding natural environment, the expansive art-themed park has a landscape of native flora and fauna, with winding recreational hiking trails offering picturesque views of the surrounding wetlands. A large retention pond forms an undulating littoral shelf lined with native aquatic vegetation. On the northern edge of the park, the 17,000 sf sculpture pavilion — OLI’s third collaboration with the artist, after the Museum of Islamic Art Park and sculpture pier for 7 in Doha, Qatar and the London Cross Gallery in Bedford NY — serves as a versatile gallery space, accommodating galas, lectures, and special events, contributing to a vibrant community atmosphere.

As the Passage of Time Pavilion serves as the anchor, the overall planning concept of the art park was to provide a heightened and pure experience of Serra’s sculpture, while keeping construction disturbances of the site to a minimum. The recreationally zoned site, which had been forested with slash pines for paper making, had the trees on the northeast half of the site harvested providing an open expanse. Besides the Passage of Time Pavilion, all amenities such as the reception, rest pavilion, visitor parking, and the large 20,000sf event space, which provide ample programming opportunities, were strategically placed on this cleared half of the site, away from the sculpture pavilion. Strategically contoured berms, whose fill will be taken from the retention pond protecting the surrounding wetlands, provide visual shielding of the pavilion forcing the visitor on a journey to discover Passage of Time.

To house Serra’s sculpture, OLI purposefully chose to visually expose the piece to be experienced with the existing tree canopy. Thus, unlike the typical pristine white box gallery container, which could be anywhere, or nowhere, the pavilion celebrates the history of the site, the native wetland, and the paper making tradition it cultivated, which serves as the sculpture’s new permanent home. This dialog with place, as in all of Richard Serra’s site-specific pieces, makes for the most powerful and impactful experience.

The design of the pavilion is deceptively simple yet highly engineered, carefully planned and detailed to heighten the art experience starting from the siting. Like the winding streams and decks that navigate the natural topography of the nearby wetlands, the pavilion is approached from a winding wooden deck, echoing the rhythmic form of the sculpture, that weaves between the tree columns. It hovers off the ground, true to the minimal impact ethos of the development. As one nears the pavilion, the turns become more frequent affording varying glimpses of the pavilion through the columns of the pine forest trunks and the pavilion façade.

The 300’ long x 110’ wide trapezoidal pavilion enclosure is entered from glass vestibules located at the concave pockets of the sculpture, one-third the length of the piece from opposing ends. The two entrances thus receive the visitors necessitating ambulation around and through, forcing an intimate experience with the sculpture.

Environmental considerations of the site were also a large factor in the design of the pavilion. From the East-West orientation of the building (the optimal orientation for the locale), to the large asymmetric pitched roof, providing vital shading while shedding the frequent rains, traditional passive strategies found in the vernacular architecture of Florida afforded large expanses of high-performance glazing. To create the desired “glass not there” effect of the envelope, the roof eaves prevent direct sunlight from falling on the 20’ tall low-e insulated glazing units which have three layers of non-reflective coating on low-iron clear glass. Meanwhile, the museum grade light diffusing insulated glass skylight, provides ample diffuse light onto the sculpture, animating the piece as if in a glade within the tree forest, making the Passage of Time a singular phenomenological experience that changes with the time of the day, the seasons, and each visit.

Due to the demands of the Florida Energy Conservation Code, strategic iterations of daylighting and energy simulation modeling were performed with key consultants to create optimal viewing conditions while ensuring code passing performance design. As we chose the energy model performance path permit submission, the existing tree canopy was modeled, aiding in the shading coefficient. For the structure, the large hovering 300’ long by 110’ wide trussed roof is supported by thick-walled pilasters of reinforced architectural concrete textured with the native pine of the surrounding forest. The pilaster placement has been engineered to allow for underground HVAC connections while allowing for a vertically textured façade of pine trunks to blend with the field of trees surrounding the pavilion while resisting the hurricane lateral wind loads.

As our research on the surrounding context and demographic trends show, it is increasingly evident that Longleaf Art Park strives to be a larger experience. Strategic programming of the site, with events and festivals and additional art amenities, will not only synergize with Serra’s sculpture, but also elevate the experience and value of the Art Park. With the addition of art amenities strategically planned nearby and throughout the “Emerald Coast,” an “art archipelago” will form, providing the critical mass to become a world class art destination.”

BSM Service Center

Design: 2020-Ongoing
Construction: 2022-Ongoing

Changxing County Xiaopu Town Smart Village Management Service Center is located in the scenic area of Baduqian, Xiaopu Town, Changxing County. It will serve four natural villages, namely, Dajiakou, Panlinan, Fangyan and Fangyi. The building of the service center is located on the shore of Badu Weir. Like a floating village among ginkgo trees, it will provide services to the villagers, and will also become a new landmark and attraction in the Badu Qin scenic area.

The architectural design concept of the service center originates from the beautiful and spectacular ancient ginkgoes in the Baduyan Scenic Area. The central building consists of tall wooden pillars shaped like the trunk of a ginkgo tree, connected by a platform and a roof. The center consists of a cluster of buildings with different functions, connected by a network of columns and lifted up to ensure an unobstructed view of the surrounding water and trees. The buildings with different functions are connected by yellow platforms, among which there are small ginkgo gardens, sun corridors and communication spaces. The roof, supported by wooden columns, is made of polycarbonate, and the ceiling is made of colored wooden strips, where the sunlight is dispersed and shines softly on the ground, as if it were a crystal clear ginkgo tree in autumn.

The largest space is the multi-functional hall, which can hold large wedding banquets of 450 people. The perimeter of the banquet hall is slightly stepped, and the space can be divided or combined to hold events of different scales.

The design will use old wood as much as possible to increase the sustainability of the project and to echo the surrounding ginkgo trees and the old timber frame house. Some structures can be prefabricated and assembled on-site to speed up construction. Wooden structures will also bring a comfortable sense of nature and warmth to people, moving their heart and reducing their stress.

The Smart Village Management Service Center in Xiaopu Town will be an environmentally friendly, comfortable, natural and people-oriented center for villagers and will receive guests from all over the world around the clock, becoming an important landmark attraction in the Badujiao scenic area.

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Luoyang Museum

Design: 2022-2023

The design concept of the Han and Wei Luoyang City Site Museum is to place architecture between the sky and the earth, and to be built upon the past. It is based on and inspired by the urban layout, architecture aesthetics, Chinese character aesthetics, statue aesthetics and landscape aesthetics of the Han and Wei dynasties of Luoyang. By regrouping and reinterpreting these elements, we formed a new architectural and landscape space with contemporary characteristics.

Adhering to Han and Wei ancestors’ artistic spirit of shifting from formal resemblance to spiritual resemblance, the building pursues air, rhythm, form and spirit, blending architecture and landscape, straight lines and curves, solid and virtual bodies.

The appearance of the building is solemn and elegant, and the layout of space is open and smooth. It is an international heritage museum for the world to understand the Han and Wei dynasties and to feel the genes of Chinese culture.

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Pharma 2/3

Pharma 2/3

Design: 2022

Pharma 2

Pharma 3

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Abogen Pharma

Abogen Pharma

Design: 2022

Our concept drew inspiration from Abogen’s research stage work with genomes, understanding them as the foundational building blocks of the human body. The representation of chromosomes are simple geometric forms, links, which when aggregated generate complex geometries and patterns. Each part is a module of the whole, which allows for complex yet controlled scaling. The design for the Abogen center too begins with simple geometries and forms (the building blocks of architecture), which are then deployed across the site at a range of scales to serve different functions creating a beautiful, functional complex from the basis of a simple 60° angle. The HQ and R+D buildings are sited at the intersection of the main road, making them the face of the project, whilst affording views back to the Wusong River. The production buildings are then arrayed around the principal buildings on the east of the site. This creates the opportunity for a protected park space to function as the connector between buildings. This vision synthesizes the fundamental forms of architecture and nature, to create a building complex serving the frontiers of science and biotechnology.

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Guanghui Museum

Guanghui Museum

Design: 2016-2018
Construction: 2022

Anchoring the ring of new civic buildings bordering between the newly-planned Central Park and developing Central Business District, the Chengdu Ink Painting Museum appears like a painting hovering above the undulating mounds of the Central Park. The museum contains an invaluable collection amassed by the founder of the Fortune 500 company of 20th-century Chinese ink wash painting masterpieces, a revered art form practiced by scholar gentlemen and literati and is elevated above a valley landscape reminiscent of the favored subject for many artists.

Looking closer, the valley which cuts across the axis of the residential and commercial headquarters of the Guanghui development is programmed with retail and public amenities, which become the base support of the two-story museum gallery wing that hovers above. The layered walls and partitions of the galleries and open circulation spaces are hidden behind multiple layers on the facade facing the Central Park, the bronze pattern reminiscent of the great ancient bronze civilizations of Chengdu. Within the natural landscape, the galleries face the Central Park reminiscent of Chengdu’s past while the East facade projects toward the glass and steel towers of the Central Business District, the new future of Chengdu.

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Siteman International Oncology Hospital

Siteman International Oncology Hospital

Design: 2019-2021

A new state-of-the-art private medical facility located between the metropolises of Suzhou, Wuxi and Shanghai, the Siteman International Oncology Hospital and Medical Center provides cutting-edge healthcare in a low-density environment integrated with the rich, natural landscapes of the historic Suzhou gardens.

At the foreground of the 128,000 m² complex, a 77,400 m² Oncology Hospital provides surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy and proton beam therapy among other specializations, advanced equipment and technology. Patient wards include 143 single-person rooms, 110 double rooms, 22 intensive care units (ICUs) and related medical treatment facilities. In lieu of a traditional hospital typology, with stacked inpatient and outpatient towers adjacent to a central diagnostic and treatment center, the Huici Suzhou International Hospital and Medical Center distributes inpatient wards and outpatient clinics into low-density complexes within the garden landscape, providing ample natural daylight and views of nature.

To minimize inefficiencies and maximize vital adjacencies, the building complexes are designed at a specific scale to loop around the central diagnostic, treatment and imaging centers. To the north of the site, higher density structures house a 6800 m² Postpartum Care Center, a 13600 m² Rehabilitation Center and a 11400 m² Nursing Center.

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Diageo Jade Complex

Diageo Jade Complex

Design: 2021-2023
Construction: 2022-Ongoing

The Diageo Jade complex is inspired by the tradition of whisky making, and its deep connection to place. Located in a fertile valley in Dali, and fed by pristine natural springs, the Jade whisky made here is born from a rich and beautiful environment. The architecture of the complex takes its cue from this relationship, drawing inspiration from the heritage of Dali and Scottish whisky making traditions, and taking advantage of the biodiverse landscape and spectacular views the site affords.

The architectural concept of the project highlights the experience of nature, by stimulating the senses. We have chosen materials and carved space in order to frame views, control light and amplify sound. The sky, water and air are integral components of the design, along with the earth, stone and planting. Taste, touch, sound and smell are all activated and stimulated through this crafted Jade experience. The Jade complex design is abstracted from the building traditions of Bai/Dali vernacular architecture, and historic Scottish whisky distilleries. These inspirations have a common material palette of rough stone, dark pitched roofs, and whitewashed walls. These materials are formed into a series of courtyard-like spaces, a typology typical in the region, to utilize sustainable practices of cross-ventilation and thermal mass. The long, linear site presents the opportunity to experience a dynamic, sloped landscape, approximately 12m from West to East.

The stone buildings of the Visitor’s Center are low and embedded in the ground along the north approach road, and then once inside dramatically open up to reveal expansive views of the Cangshan Mountains to the south. The building layout is terraced to take advantage of the naturally sloping site and create a dynamic visitor experience to be discovered.

A series of pools and water features are integrated with the Visitor’s Center to emphasize Jade’s deep connection to water. These pools are filled with purified water from the processing of the pristine single malt whisky. This water, along with collected rainwater, is also used to irrigate the lush landscape at the east end of the site, supporting the biodiversity of Yunnan where the original pristine spring water is cycled back into the ecosystem.

The tapered form of the barrel tower is an abstraction, of the famous Three Pagodas of the Chongsheng Temple in Dali. It is jewel-like shape (tapered at the top and bottom) minimizes shade of the peripheral platform below while giving the form a perspectival lift and a taller appearance than the actual height. The barrel tower is clad in tessellated pattern of white hexagonal metal panels, reminiscent of the faceted tiles found in the vernacular “Bai Architecture” of the region.

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Fangsuo Commune

Fangsuo Commune

Design: 2018-2020

Shanghai Fangsuo Culture Center Public Culture Project is located at 1790 Bin Jiang Blvd, Pudong New Area, Shanghai, a traditional industrial shipyard which has been planned by the district government to be transformed to a new cultural and retail destination. Flanked by an OMA exhibition pavilion and a shipyard factory which was adaptively reused into a new conference center by Kengo Kuma, the new Shanghai Fangsuo Cultural Center will be a new cultural bookstore containing, themed zones of books and activity. Proprietary Fangsuo goods and activities of books, stationary, fashion, cafe, kitchen studios, gallery and theater, have been designed adjacent themed marketing tie-ups and retail collaborations throughout the 17,000m2 complex.

The design of the project was inspired by the historical memory of the industrial shipyard and the adjacent Haungpu river, the commerical lifeline to the development of Shanghai. OLI’s design was conceived as two ship hulls creating a spine of bookshelves with themed zones in the never used partially submerged core and shell building. The axial spine with a series of intermittent skylights and three main courtyards connected to flood locks abutting the river, connects the various programmed spaces on either side, allowing the visitors to wander through strategically placed openings and mezzanine bridges. The materials are mainly architectural color concrete, textured blackened steel and terrazzo with specially designed metal bookshelves inspired by ship elements. The East and West entrance canopies and the unique stair elements of the courtyards allowing multiple access points into the retail complex are also incorporated into the ship inspired design.

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Museum of Islamic Art Park

Museum of Islamic Art Park

Design: 2009-2010
Construction: 2010-2012
Design Consultant/Project Designer: Hiroshi Okamoto
Lead Consultant: Pei Partnership Architects

The Museum of Islamic Art Park is a redevelopment project of the 24-hectare man-made, landfill surrounding I. M. Pei’s Museum of Islamic Art (2008 – Hiroshi Okamoto, Designer, Site representative, Construction Administration) in Doha, Qatar.

Anchored by a specially commissioned, site specific 79ft sculpture by Richard Serra, the park’s 5-hectare peninsula is programmed with restaurants, kiosks and leisure amenities terminating the redevelopment of the Doha corniche, and the prominent urban sea lined green belt into a cultural public park, accessible and open 24 hours to all visitors and families in the capital city of Doha.

The black granite pier designed for the Serra sculpture, a monolithic chamfered parallelogram, terminates a palm lined allee cove, creating a majestic backdrop to the Museum of Islamic Art providing panoramic views of the entire Doha Bay and rapidly transforming skyline. The pier cantilevers 249ft on its side, over the water, creating an innate tension between the verticality of the sculpture and the horizontality of the pier. Inaugurated in December 2011, the sculpture commemoration celebrated Doha as the 2011 Cultural Capital of the Middle East.

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China Silk Embroidery Art Museum

China Silk Embroidery Art Museum

Design: 2010-2014

The China Silk Embroidery Art Museum is located on the west side of Suzhou, China, housing a UNESCO World Heritage Garden and Wang Ao Temple. With the exception of a few large-scale public buildings, the context is residential and richly historic with the history of Suzhou’s embroidery art. The design for the museum distinguishes architectural volumes by different programmatic functions, allocating exhibition space to the Southeast while locating reception functions to the West. Entering through a gate, visitors pass through a glass reception pavilion before circulating through the galleries of artifacts and masterpieces, following the sequential steps of embroidery production: from embroidery design to silk dying, weaving, and mounting for display.

The museum integrates the UNESCO Garden through an array of small-scale volumes within the landscape, expanding further into small courtyards. The space fluctuates through harmonic oppositions, from open to enclosed spaces both narrow and wide. While the embroidery galleries and studios require indirect lighting, the public spaces adjacent to the courtyard access its abundant daylight.

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Haidao Silk Art Culture Park

Haidao Silk Art Culture Park

Design: 2013-2014

Located in Haina, China, about 15km from downtown Haikou, the project responds to the Qiongzhou Straight in which it is situated, the surrounding Wuyuan River Forest Park and the bisecting Central Park. From the onset, volumetric studies of the Haido Silk Art Cultural Park proved invaluable for creating a singular identity from the multiplicity of programmatic elements.

The office towers, hotels and boutique formally resulted from the stacking of individual slabs in relativity to each other and to site zoning, views, and solar orientation. The slabs were expressed on the facade as bands, reminiscent of threads of silk, disclosing the process in the design. In the gradual shortening and lengthening of the white aluminum bands, deep eaves are created, shading against sun exposure and promoting passive cooling. From the Silk Museum to the Special Silk Retail the thread is “woven” between the individual programs, pushing and pulling, shaping terraced landscapes and enveloping a central green courtyard within.

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