Reinventing a New Sustainable and Walkable Neighbourhood Centre for Wuhan CBD
Huafa Wuhan City Hub is located in the Wuhan Central Business District area near Hankou Railway Station, a central node of the Chinese high-speed railway system. Benoy was commissioned to redesign the façade for the scheme that was undergoing construction while maintaining the original structure within a highly condensed timeframe. Tasked to create a new vision for the comprehensive reconfiguration, Benoy raised the perception of the buildings and the quality of the spaces to a whole new level – all without any impact on the already-built structure and the ongoing construction program.
One of the key concerns was that the original scheme design did not capture the identity of its physical and cultural context. Together with the client, the design team started by exploring different parts of Wuhan to understand how the local people spend their time and interact with the environment. Greatly inspired by the pedestrian-friendly areas along the bund in Wuhan, the team then developed a key strategy that brings a sense of human scale to the development. The aim is to create a welcoming and walkable streetscape that can evolve into a neighbourhood centre for the local community. The design is positioned to bring people together and bolsters the joy of walking around the bund area.
Gregory Kovacs, Design Director and Project Director said:
“When we started working on this project all the structure was already built. Our goal was to transform the perception of the scale of the buildings — while leaving all the structure intact, using only façade articulation. To create a human-scale, pedestrian-focused neighbourhood centre; a contemporary reinterpretation of the intricate, every changing, playful qualities of the historical bund area of Wuhan.”
Design Concept
To ensure that the new concept could be completed within the tight timeline, the team worked closely with the client through constant communication and designing the scheme through sketching on-site. The development’s commercial section mainly consists of retail and F&B streets, generated by a series of blocks and the indoor mall sitting under the office towers.
Benoy developed an architectural language for the façades that offers a more intricate and human-scale articulation to the large-scale massing while simultaneously addressing the diversity of different conditions and requirements. Resembling the movement of an accordion, the serrated façade opens and closes, forming a dynamic rhythm along the streets. The serrations respond to environmental and functional requirements by shaping solid and open façade zones while retaining its visual consistency.
Benoy’s flexible façade system integrates a rich variety of shopfronts, cores, advertisements, signages, bridges, balconies, and greenery. We created a coherent language across the development that adapts to the changing requirements of the varying scales of the buildings. Furthermore, the façade is instrumentalised as an essential tool for placemaking. The pure white typical parts of the façade frame provide richness and diversity, whether through the retail shopfronts or a series of carefully curated highlights.
Creating Value through Transforming Customer Journeys
Special attention was given to curating journeys within the scheme. Starting with the iconic arrival, the entrance points into the retail street to a series of green features and unique spatial experiences that lead towards the heart of the complex, highlighted by smaller freestanding F&B buildings and the featured lift. This physical journey was interwoven with a virtual one, a network of moments across the plan using a combination of landscaping, architecture, and art. Additionally, the scheme is also an exciting collaboration with an internationally renowned artist, Tom Claassen, on some of the iconic sculptures throughout the project.
An Artistic Biodiversity Experience Centre
As part of the placemaking strategy, a series of playful bronze sculptures of rabbits mark the key points of the pedestrian journey throughout the streetscape. These sculptures are designed by Tom Claassen, a renowned Dutch artist who is primarily known for his 25 years of design experience and specialises in art pieces created for public venues.
Through a variety of poses and locations, the bronze figures create a sense of congregating and meeting. In each location, the animals inhabit the open spaces as if unleashed to play freely and joyfully in the mall, subtly integrating into the architecture and interacting with visitors. This series of artworks not only attract customers to the mall but also strengthen the commercial image and brand of the Wuhan Huafa project, adding youthful energy to the site.
Significance to the Community
The project brings a pedestrian friendly new neighbourhood centre to the developing CBD district of Wuhan; a welcoming, green, interactive streetscape of cultural, communal and commercial functions. Huafa Wuhan City Hub is set to be an iconic landmark in the CBD area by providing elegant and sophisticated living, working and recreational venues.
This project’s design builds on the qualities of the streetscape of Wuhan’s historical bund area, a distinctive combination of Chinese and Western architecture. Moreover, it embraces human scale, anticipating walkable and pedestrian-friendly streets and squares across multiple floors. It is an innovative vision of a compact, three-dimensional, neighbourhood centre.
Project Overview:
Scope of Service: Façade Design, Interior Design (partial)
Category: Mixed-use, Retail
GFA: 200,436.37 m²
Client: Huafa Group, Wuhan Urban Construction Group
Project Director: Gregory Kovacs
Design team: Clement Kho, Darren Snow, Jinyoung Choi, Mo Tam, Tomohiro Sugeta, Peggy Wong, Edward Ge
