The gut-renovation opens the former closed-off complex to the public by creating social spaces at multiple-levels, and merging interior with exterior.
The design welcomes the public in through a series of large architectural gestures: the basement retail is opened to the sky; new glowing masses (“lanterns”) guide pedestrians through; heavily built parts are cut out; and many interior spaces extend to outdoor terraces.
This approach takes on sculptural form in the entrance-facing facade, which is carved into a vertical climbing garden, breaking down the massive scale of the 35m (115ft) tall building and creating a very dynamic, interactive public space with views over the city.
Cost-analyses resulted in material and construction design changes: water features were transformed into symbolic glowing glass elements; the design of the glowing “lanterns” was simplified, including losing the glass roofs; and the vertical planted walls were removed, keeping only the planters.
It was very challenging to create inviting scuptural spaces within a very rigid existing multi-story structure.
I worked on the development of the stepping garden terrace area and the atrium with the glass roofs, and on coordinating the structural and the massive amounts of required emergency exiting with Jerde’s design intent. I also developed and coordinated the plans, which – with the large amount stepping back-and-forth, cut-outs, and inside-outside variation over 9 stories (7 above ground and 2 basement) – are quite complex.
ARCHITECT
The Jerde Partnership (Eduardo Lopez, Project Principal)
IOANA URMA’s ROLE
Design consultant, DD Phase: Developed stepping garden terrace and glass-roof atrium; coordinated structural & emergency exiting with design intent; developed & coordinated plans.
SITE
Daxing District, Beijing, China
MATERIALS & DIMENSIONS
- · 9 stories: 7 retail above ground + 1 retail below ground + 1 parking below ground
- · 805,000 sq ft (almost 75,000 sqm)
IMAGE CREDITS
Drawings (featured on this page): Ioana Urma. Photographs: The Jerde Partnership.





The plans show the challenge of carving through existing buildings and structures.



The plans show the challenge of carving through existing buildings and structures.



Pushing design development through detailed studies safeguards the main concepts during value engineering, even if the details themselves are changed.


Pushing design development through detailed studies safeguards the main concepts during value engineering, even if the details themselves are changed.

