Safdie Architects has announced the completion of LuOne Mixed-Use Complex—a business, retail, and entertainment development in the Luwan district of Shanghai, China.
The mixed-use complex consists of an eight-level retail galleria, which opened in 2018, and a 35-story office tower, which recently reached completion. Both the 140,000-sm (1.5 million-sf) retail galleria and the 45,000-sm (484,000-sf) office tower are organized around atrium gardens intended to offer visitors and workers an urban oasis in the heart of the city.
Located on the site’s northeast corner, the office building integrates with the retail program at each level of the galleria, including the publicly accessible, landscaped roof terrace. The office tower’s southwest edge features a glass-enclosed corner garden that ascends the 160-m building—creating the appearance of greenery climbing the entire 35-story tower. Seven vertically stacked gardens, each four stories high, incorporate specimen trees, mature shrubs, and vegetation in ceiling-mounted planters.
“LuOne answers the pressing need for connection to nature and a place of community within Shanghai’s urban core,” Christopher Mulvey, senior partner, Safdie Architects, said in a statement.
The retail podium includes three sections surrounding a triangular atrium garden in the center. Above the atrium, a large toroidal dome skylight emerges from a central stem supported on the third level. Linear skylights radiate out from the dome, bringing daylight to the lowest levels, two stories below street level.
On the Building Team:
Client: CapitaMalls Asia
Design architect: Safdie Architects
Executive architect: SIADR (Shanghai Institute of Architectural Design & Research Co., Ltd.)
Structural engineer, MEP engineer, and LEED environmental engineer: Arup
Landscape architect: Coen + Partners, USA
Landscape design institute: Ager Group, Beijing
Interior designer: Shanghai Jieyu Architecture Design Co., Ltd. (office interiors), AGC Design Ltd. (retail galleria)
Lighting consultant: Brandston Partnership
Façade engineer: Schmidlin
General contractor: China Construction First Bureau Company Limited
Here is the full press release from Safdie Architects:
Safdie Architects announces the completion of LuOne Mixed-Use Complex, an integrated hub for dynamic businesses, retail, and entertainment in the historic Luwan district of Shanghai. Both the eight-level retail galleria and a 35-story office tower are organized around atrium gardens that provide visitors and workers with a serene destination in the heart of the city. The 140,000-square-meter (1.5M-square-foot) retail galleria has thrived since it opened in 2018. With the completion of the approximately 45,000-square-meter (484,000-square-foot) office tower, the original vision is fully realized in this vibrant and programmatically diverse project.
Located on the northeast corner of the site, the office building integrates with the retail program at each level of the retail galleria including the publicly accessible landscaped roof terrace. Along the southwest edge of the office tower, a glass-enclosed “corner garden” ascends the 160-meter building. Seven gardens, each four stories in height and stacked vertically, incorporate specimen trees, mature shrubs, and vegetation cascading from ceiling-mounted planters, which create the appearance of greenery climbing the entirety of the 35-story tower.
“LuOne answers the pressing need for connection to nature and a place of community within Shanghai’s urban core. Amidst the density of the historic Luwan district and its busy boulevards, the galleria atrium and office corner gardens offer occupants a place for respite in the heart of Shanghai,” said Christopher Mulvey, the Senior Partner of Safdie Architects who relocated to China in 2011 to establish the firm’s presence and oversee the development of active projects in the region.
The eight-story retail podium is an extroverted space that organizes shops along three gallerias, which connect surrounding streets through the building and define a triangular atrium garden in the center. In the tradition of celebrated conservatory gardens, the atrium is enclosed by a grand toroidal dome skylight that springs from a central stem support on the third level. Linear skylights radiate out from the dome and bring daylight into the lowest levels of the gallerias, two stories below the street.
A two-story bronze colonnade lines the retail podium and frames each of the main galleria entrances. Shops at street-level also open onto the sidewalk, which activates the building edge and animates the public realm. The upper stories are adorned with a kinetic art installation by Ned Kahn, an American artist known for large-scale interventions that encourage observation of natural phenomena. The work consists of hundreds of thousands of anodized metal panels that swing on hidden horizontal rods in response to the breeze.
LuOne is Safdie Architects’ fourth completed project with CapitaLand, following Raffles City mixed-use development in Chongqing, China (2020), and, in Singapore, Jewel Changi Airport (2019) and SkyHabitat residential towers (2016).
Related Stories
High-rise Construction | Apr 28, 2016
bKL Architecture proposes world’s third tallest tower for China
The mixed-use H700 Shenzhen Tower will have sky gardens, angled recesses, and an attached plaza. It will trail only the Burj Khalifa and the Jeddah Tower in terms of height.
Mixed-Use | Apr 24, 2016
Atlanta’s Tech Square is establishing The ATL’s Midtown district as a premier innovation center
A much anticipated, Portman-developed tower project will include collaborative office spaces, a data center, and a retail plaza.
High-rise Construction | Apr 21, 2016
Ingenhoven Architects unveils plans for two Tokyo towers
The Toranomon District will add a business and a residential high-rise, both of which feature green and energy-efficient design.
High-rise Construction | Apr 20, 2016
OMA reveals designs for its first Tokyo skyscraper
The goal is for the Toranomon Hills Station Tower to transform its neighborhood and serve as a hub for international business.
High-rise Construction | Apr 12, 2016
Santiago Calatrava tower in Dubai could be taller than the Burj Khalifa
The slender structure will have 10 observation platforms, two Hanging Gardens decks, and a illuminating flower bud at the top.
Virtual Reality | Apr 8, 2016
Skanska will use Microsoft HoloLens to lease planned Seattle high rise
The mixed reality headset will allow people to take a holographic tour of the building while keeping visual contact with the leasing representative.
BIM and Information Technology | Apr 5, 2016
Interactive 3D map shows present and future Miami skyline
The Downtown Miami Interactive 3-D Skyline Map lets users see the status of every downtown office, retail, residential, and hotel project.
High-rise Construction | Mar 28, 2016
SOM’s Salt Lake City skyscraper uses innovative structural system to suspend itself over a neighboring building
The hat truss-supported office tower was topped off in January, rising 25 stories above the Salt Lake City streets.
High-rise Construction | Mar 18, 2016
'High-Rise' movie, based on the novel of the same name, headed to theaters
The story, which was originally thought to be a critique of London’s city planning, takes place in a high-rise divided to mimic the historical class structure of Western society.
High-rise Construction | Mar 10, 2016
Bigger, taller, wider: London’s skyline is about to have a major growth spurt
More than 100 tall buildings have been added to the plans for the capital city since this time last year, and the overall number of tall buildings planned for London is now over 400.
