The first exhibition by Zaha Hadid Architects 'ZHA Close Up – Work & Research' at the Modern Art Museum in Shanghai is now open to visitors. The exhibition displays an in-depth look at the evolution of Zaha Hadid Architects’ projects over the last 40 years, from the MAXXI Museum and the Leeza SOHO in Beijing, to the studio’s current ongoing projects across the world. The exhibition is the first by the architect to be held in in mainland China and will run until August 29, 2021.
ZHA Close Up highlights the detailing and technological innovations that have shaped how the studio imagines, designs, and constructs built environments, making it one of the most prominent and spatially inventive practices in the world. It also presents the studio's extensive research across the decades that give insights so to how architects can improve the design and construction industry, such as:
- Sustainability- "the application of detailed environmental analysis and geometry optimization techniques to maximize efficient design with less waste and consumption of resources".
- Computation & Design- "collaboration with the world’s most respected scientific institutions to develop innovations in robotics, artificial intelligence and digital fabrication".
- ZH Social- "investigation of the social interaction processes to be expected in the designed environments via agent-based simulations with differentiated agent populations and decision processes".
- Analytics & Insights- "data analytics and human behavior modelling to design healthy and productive working environments that are tailor-made to overall and individual wellness".
- Virtual Reality- "demonstrating the remarkable possibilities immersive technologies will offer architects to collaborate and design in augmented reality".
The exhibition will also present Zaha Hadid Design (ZHD), a platform founded in 2006 that shares Hadid’s dialogue of contemporary design, inventive methodology, and signature designs in furniture and lighting. Since its founding, ZHD has partnered with brands to create unique limited edition pieces that convey immaculate craftsmanship and Hadid’s virtuosity with fluid geometry.
Zaha Hadid Architects has recently collaborated with Hyperloop Italia to co-design the next phase of works of the transport vehicles, marking a turning point for the future of transportation. The collaboration aims to merge transformative architecture, engineering, and urban planning with the most efficient and sustainable transport network to improve accessibility, connectivity, and well-being in cities.