Fosun Group hired Woods Bagot to transform commercial planning of Dahua, an 82-year-old historic textile mill, into China’s next retail and entertainment district. Located in Xi’an’s urban center, the site sits next to Daming Palace, the Tang Dynasty’s royal residence and a national heritage site which attracts thousands of tourists each year.
These historic buildings already have their own story to tell. We want to let them speak for themselves and then build on that story by writing the next chapter. Our design binds together old and new and turns conflict into dialogue, creating vitality from contrast. When it’s complete, Dahua 1935 will set the bar for retail-led historic renovation projects in China and create a world-class retail and entertainment destination for this vibrant city said Ian Png, Principal at Woods Bagot.
Connecting past and future, Woods Bagot integrated layers of the imperial, industrial heritage which shaped the original site with modern innovation. The 65,000 square meter complex will be broken up into six themed zones: the dream workshop, amusement workshop, market workshop, power workshop, and two others dedicated to music and culture. The dream workshop is a colorful space for idea stimulation. Cirque du Soleil will be showcased in the amusement workshop. Visitors can shop local produce at the market workshop, while the power workshop will focus on sports and health. In between the zones, history-inspired sculptural art will create focal points throughout the site. Many users will arrive at the site via a new subway station which China plans to add within the year.
The building was designed by Land-Based Rationalism D-R-C. China’s new entertainment district is expected to be open for business in 2019.
News via: Woods Bagot.
