shenzhen opera house proposals include designs from BIG and kengo kuma

following the news that jean nouvel had been selected as part of an international competition to build a new opera house in shenzhen, china, the contest’s organizers have now shared the other shortlisted schemes. the competition attracted interest from some of the world’s most recognized firms, including bjarke ingels group, kengo kuma, MVRDV, snøhetta, and REX.

BIG – bjarke ingels group + beijing institute of architectural design (BIAD) | image © BIG + BIAD (also top images)
all images courtesy of the international architecture design competition of shenzhen opera house

with jean nouvel’s design coming in first place, proposals from bjarke ingels group (working with the beijing institute of architectural design) and kengo kuma & associates (working with the shenzhen university institute of architectural design) finished joint runners-up. BIG’s design comprises a series of tented canopies, which dramatically rise and fall to offer views out to sea. meanwhile, kengo kuma’s scheme appears to emerge organically out of the water, unobtrusively occupying its coastal plot.

kengo kuma & associates + shenzhen university institute of architectural design | image © MIR

third place in the competition was jointly awarded to: MVRDV, who teamed up with the guangzhou design institute; snøhetta; and REX, who joined forces with JET design architect. these proposals, as well as 11 other entries by firms such as rogers stirk harbour + partners, UNStudio, mecanoo, and diller scofidio + renfro can be seen below, while the competition’s winning scheme can be seen here. more information about the project can be found on the website of the shenzhen design center.

kengo kuma & associates + shenzhen university institute of architectural design | image © MIR

MVRDV + guangzhou design institute | image © MVRDV + guangzhou design institute

MVRDV + guangzhou design institute | image © MVRDV + guangzhou design institute

snøhetta | image © snøhetta

snøhetta | image © snøhetta

REX architecture + JET design architect inc. | image © REX architecture + JET design architect inc.

REX architecture + JET design architect inc. | image © REX architecture + JET design architect inc.

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project info:

name: shenzhen opera house
location: shenzhen, guangdong, china
status: competition proposals
winning proposal: ateliers jean nouvel