On Saturday, May 15, 2010, Steven Holl Architects opens the exhibition Urbanisms: Steven Holl + Li Hu, 4 Projects in China by Steven Holl Architects in the Linked Hybrid, in Beijing, China.
The exhibition tracks the process of designing four projects in China from 2003-2009: Nanjing Museum of Art and Architecture, Beijing Linked Hybrid, Shenzhen Horizontal Skyscraper, and Chengdu Sliced Porosity Block.
More information after the break.
As China experiences one of the world’s largest urbanizations in history, these works explore the creation of collective urban space- as opposed to object buildings. Rather than monofunctional buildings, these are new hybrid buildings with rich programmatic juxtapositions. Each project investigates the phenomena of light and tactility through material development and experimentation. Geothermal cooling and heating, solar PVC and grey water recycling are among several green strategies utilized in all the projects.
The exhibition illustrates the design process from initial conception to current status; documenting the collaborative process of model making, drawing, and animation. The works presented are the product of a cooperative effort between Steven Holl Architects’ offices in New York and Beijing, where the difference in time zones often facilitates a continuous 24 hours cycle of production, the results of which are unprecedented works that are a fusion of landscape, urbanisms, and architecture.
The exhibition will be on view in Linked Hybrid, in Beijing. This 220,000 square-meter complex, a design by Steven Holl with partner Li Hu, aims to counter current privatized urban developments by creating a twenty-first century porous urban space, inviting and open to the public from every side. The project promotes interactive relations and encourages encounters in the public spaces that vary from commercial, residential, and educational to recreational; a three-dimensional public urban space.
