A new district designed by Heatherwick studio has opened in Xi'an, honouring the Chinese city's legacy of craftmanship and ceramics. The Xi'an Centre Culture Business District (CCBD) is located south of the city's historic centre between the ruins of the Temple of Heaven and the prominent Shaanxi TV tower. The district blends a retail podium with walkable streets, terraces and open plazas, offices, apartments, accommodation, green spaces, and a vertical park.
Ceramics are at the heart of the 155,000m² neighbourhood, with crafted tiles cladding the facade, columns and curving beams, a nod to the ancient capital's famous Terracotta Army. The design team worked closely with local makers to produce more than 100,000 tiles with a unique glaze. Following over 2,000 experiments, including constructing 1:1 mock ups of the columns, the resulting facade brings interest and intricacy to the exterior of the buildings and invites visitors not just to look at but also touch the tiles.
Heatherwick 工作室的創始人兼設計總監 Thomas Heatherwick 說:“我們很高興能在西安打造一個商業區,為城市提供一個不同的新公共空間。我們不是簡單地建造各種建筑,鋪設建筑間的路面、種植植物,而是在多個層面上打造一個意想不到的三維城市景觀,讓市民可以在這里漫步和交流。
Thomas Heatherwick, founder and design director of Heatherwick studio, said: "Here in Xi'an, we were excited to create a commercial district which gave the city an extraordinary new piece of public space. Instead of simply making different buildings, and paving and planting the spaces between them, there was the opportunity to craft an unexpected three-dimensional urban landscape on many levels, where citizens of the city can promenade and meet each other.
Pursuing our interest in people's human scale experience of places, we also had the chance to integrate many special constructional details, to help make the project as engaging as possible for people to walk around. The goal of the whole project was to find a joyful and contemporary way to respond to the history of Xi'an, and bring people together."
The outdoor streets of the district converge at the central plaza where the Xi'an Tree, a vertical park, creates a natural gathering point. Visitors can ascend its 56 elevated 'petals', or terraces where a sequence of cascading gardens follows the biomes of the ancient Silk Route from the alpine tundra to the dry steppe. Standing over 57 meters high from the basement level the Tree offers views across the development with its varying levels of roofs, terraces and streets, as well as the city beyond.
The district has been designed to offer visual complexity from three distances. At a city-scale, it appears as a new neighbourhood of the city with a distinctive skyline inspired by the roofs of the Chinese temples of Xi'an. At a street distance, the varying levels created by the interlocking frames and landscape terraces provide different vantage points of the central plaza as well as the city around it. Finally, at door-level, the design offers a sensory experience in its use of materials and nature, such as ceramic planters and soft-edged stones in the paving patterns.
Heatherwick 工作室合伙人兼組長 Mat Cash 說:“世界各地都在建造超大規模的開發項目,都是為了滿足快速城市化的人口需求。就本質而言,這些項目往往是霸道、單一且缺乏特色,對它們要服務的游客毫無幫助。與此不同的是,我們希望在西安的項目中注入隨著時間推移,城市自然形成的精神、多樣性和質感,向這座城市的傳統制造業及其與陶瓷的歷史淵源致敬。這里的電梯按鈕、門把手、手工雕刻的木質扶手和座椅,都讓人忍不住伸出手去觸摸。我們希望,在未來的幾十年里,它能成為一個讓人馬上就能感覺到自己屬于這座城市一部分的地方,同時也是游客們愿意逗留的地方。”西安 CBD 的公共空間已在2024 年12月向游客開放。
Mat Cash, partner and group leader at Heatherwick studio said: "Super large-scale developments are being built all over the world to satisfy rapidly urbanising populations. By their very nature they are often overbearing, singular and devoid of character – they do nothing for people they are meant to serve. As a counterpoint, we wanted to infuse our project in Xi'an with the spirit, variety, and texture that happens naturally in cities over time. The district pays homage to the city's tradition of making and its historic connection to ceramics. It is a place which invites you to reach out and touch it – with glazed lift buttons and door handles to hand-carved timber handrails and seats. We hope it will be a place that feels immediately a part of the city and where visitors to the neighbourhood will want to spend time in the decades to come." Xi'an CCBD's public spaces opened to visitors in December 2024.
建筑師:Heatherwick Studio
類型:多功能建筑
面積:155000 m²
年份:2024年
攝影:Yanqing Zhu, Luis Sacristan Murga
制造商:HEDE、TOB、Yi Design HEDE,TOB,YiDesign
結構工程:RBS, CFT
Mep工程:WSP Norge, WSP
燈光顧問:Speirs+Major
工程合作方:Robotics Plus
景觀設計:Heatherwick Studio
設計指導:Thomas Heatherwick
團隊負責人:Mat Cash
項目負責人:Luis Sacristán Murga, Simon Winters, Angel Tenorio
項目管理:Consuelo Manna, Jimmy Hung
技術設計負責人:Nick Ling, Maura Ambrosiano
建筑設計團隊:Adam Brown, Alfredo Chavez, Almu Rodrigue, Anjie Gu, Aziz Hoque, Blue Tuohy, Cong Wang, Consuelo Manna, Eric Lim, Erich Breuer, Fanos Katsaris, Francis Ng, Freddie Lomas, Hannah Parker, Hannah Steenson, Helen Siu, James Ness, Jethro Rebollar, Ji Qi, Jimmy Hung, Ko-Cheng Liu, Kong Hoang, Linus Cheng, Luis Sacristán Murga, Luke Plumbley, Manuel Ramos, Marwah Osama, Mat Cash, Matthew Magee, Meera Yadave, Michael Kloihofer, Nick Ling, Remi Phillips-Hood, Sherry Xiao, Silvia Rueda Cuellar, Simon Winters, Simone Berardelli, Sonila Kadillari, Steven Howson, Victoria Dong, Vito Sugianto, Willow Tang
景觀設計團隊:Aziz Hoque, Consuelo Manna, Erich Breuer, Fanos Katsaris, Hamze Machmouchi, Harriet Gargrave, Jimmy Hung, Kate Le Masurier, Kelvin Lam, Luis Sacristán Murga, Mat Cash, Maura Ambrosiano, Paul Chu, Philipp Nedomlel, Remi Phillips-Hood, Sherry Xiao, Winki Ho, Yijia Li
西安樹設計團隊:Angel Tenorio, Andrew Friedenberg, Anjie Gu, Cameron Overy, Consuelo Manna, Diana Mykhaylychenko, Dirce Medina Patatuchi, Fabian Hubner, Ji Qi, Jimmy Hung, Joanna Sabak, Joe Brennan, Kyriakos Chatziparaskevas, Martynas Kasiulevicius, Mat Cash, Nick Ling, Nicolas Ombres, Ondrej Pokoj, Peter Romvari, Sherry Xiao, Theophile Peju
室內設計團隊:Agnes Kerecsanin, Aleksandar Bursac, Alice Dousova, Andre Kong, Ayumi Konishi, Aziz Hoque, Beau Lawrence, Blue Tuohy, Bori Kovacs, Carrick Blore, Charlotte McCarthy, Chen He, Chen Yue, Consuelo Manna, Edward Milton, Emric John-Sawyer, Ezgi Terzioglu, Fanos Katsaris, Flavio Sousa Monteiro, Francesca Morroni, Francesca Valentino, Freddie Lomas, Hannah Francis, Harriet Gargrave, James Harris, Jimmy Hung, Ji Qi, Joe Brennan, Karim Hallak, Kelvin Lam, Krina Christopoulou, Liang-Yu Sung, Lijing Zhou, Marcus Hawk, Mark McKee, Mary Suen, Martynas Kasiulevicius, Matthew Heitel, Mat Cash, Maura Ambrosiano, May Tang, Moira Geddes, Natasha Trumic, Nick Ling, Noa Guy, Olga Rienda, Oliver Zhu, Paul Brooke, Pennie Dawes, Ragavendran Gowrisankar, Silvia Rueda Cuellar, Simone Berardelli, Sofia Hagen, Thomas Thornton, Xirong Zheng
當地立面設計機構:KTF
當地室內設計機構:Sky Design
當地景觀設計機構:Green
景觀設計:WSP, WTD
當地燈光設計機構:HDA
客戶:China Resources Land (CR Land)
合作建筑設計:GP Architects, 10 Design, Lacime, KPF
立面工程:Arup
可視化設計:MIR, Devisual, Slashcube
當地設計機構:JZFZ
城市:西安
國家:中國
Mixed Use Architecture, Office Buildings, Commercial Architecture
Xi'An, China
Architects: Heatherwick Studio
Area: 155000 m²
Year: 2024
Photographs:Yanqing Zhu, Luis Sacristan Murga
Manufacturers: HEDE,TOB,YiDesign
Structure Engineering: RBS, CFT
Mep Engineering: WSP Norge, WSP
Lighting Consutlant: Speirs+Major
Engineering Collaborators: Robotics Plus
Landscape Design: Heatherwick Studio
Design Director: Thomas Heatherwick
Group Leader: Mat Cash
Project Leaders: Luis Sacristán Murga, Simon Winters, Angel Tenorio
Project Managers: Consuelo Manna, Jimmy Hung
Technical Design Leaders: Nick Ling, Maura Ambrosiano
Architecture Design Team: Adam Brown, Alfredo Chavez, Almu Rodrigue, Anjie Gu, Aziz Hoque, Blue Tuohy, Cong Wang, Consuelo Manna, Eric Lim, Erich Breuer, Fanos Katsaris, Francis Ng, Freddie Lomas, Hannah Parker, Hannah Steenson, Helen Siu, James Ness, Jethro Rebollar, Ji Qi, Jimmy Hung, Ko-Cheng Liu, Kong Hoang, Linus Cheng, Luis Sacristán Murga, Luke Plumbley, Manuel Ramos, Marwah Osama, Mat Cash, Matthew Magee, Meera Yadave, Michael Kloihofer, Nick Ling, Remi Phillips-Hood, Sherry Xiao, Silvia Rueda Cuellar, Simon Winters, Simone Berardelli, Sonila Kadillari, Steven Howson, Victoria Dong, Vito Sugianto, Willow Tang
Landscape Design Team: Aziz Hoque, Consuelo Manna, Erich Breuer, Fanos Katsaris, Hamze Machmouchi, Harriet Gargrave, Jimmy Hung, Kate Le Masurier, Kelvin Lam, Luis Sacristán Murga, Mat Cash, Maura Ambrosiano, Paul Chu, Philipp Nedomlel, Remi Phillips-Hood, Sherry Xiao, Winki Ho, Yijia Li
Xi’an Tree Design Team: Angel Tenorio, Andrew Friedenberg, Anjie Gu, Cameron Overy, Consuelo Manna, Diana Mykhaylychenko, Dirce Medina Patatuchi, Fabian Hubner, Ji Qi, Jimmy Hung, Joanna Sabak, Joe Brennan, Kyriakos Chatziparaskevas, Martynas Kasiulevicius, Mat Cash, Nick Ling, Nicolas Ombres, Ondrej Pokoj, Peter Romvari, Sherry Xiao, Theophile Peju
Interiors Design Team: Agnes Kerecsanin, Aleksandar Bursac, Alice Dousova, Andre Kong, Ayumi Konishi, Aziz Hoque, Beau Lawrence, Blue Tuohy, Bori Kovacs, Carrick Blore, Charlotte McCarthy, Chen He, Chen Yue, Consuelo Manna, Edward Milton, Emric John-Sawyer, Ezgi Terzioglu, Fanos Katsaris, Flavio Sousa Monteiro, Francesca Morroni, Francesca Valentino, Freddie Lomas, Hannah Francis, Harriet Gargrave, James Harris, Jimmy Hung, Ji Qi, Joe Brennan, Karim Hallak, Kelvin Lam, Krina Christopoulou, Liang-Yu Sung, Lijing Zhou, Marcus Hawk, Mark McKee, Mary Suen, Martynas Kasiulevicius, Matthew Heitel, Mat Cash, Maura Ambrosiano, May Tang, Moira Geddes, Natasha Trumic, Nick Ling, Noa Guy, Olga Rienda, Oliver Zhu, Paul Brooke, Pennie Dawes, Ragavendran Gowrisankar, Silvia Rueda Cuellar, Simone Berardelli, Sofia Hagen, Thomas Thornton, Xirong Zheng
Facade Local Design Institutes: KTF
Interior Local Design Institutes: Sky Design
Landscape Local Design Institutes: Green
Landscape Executive Architect: WSP, WTD
Lighting Local Design Institutes: HDA
Client: China Resources Land (CR Land)
Collaborators Architects: GP Architects, 10 Design, Lacime, KPF
Facade Engineering: Arup
Visualisations: MIR, Devisual, Slashcube
Local Design Institutes: JZFZ
City: Xi'An
Country: China