UNStudio: raffles city, hangzhou, china

raffles city, hangzhou, china by UNStudio image courtesy UNStudio

UNStudio‘s design for the mixed-use raffles city development is located near the qiangtan river in hangzhou, the capital of zhejiang province, china. the project incorporates retail, offices, housing and hotel facilities and marks the site of a cultural landscape within the quianjiang new town area.

after four years of planning and construction, it will reach a height of 60 stories, presenting views both to and from the qiantang river and west lake areas. raffles city hangzhou will provide a total floor area of almost 300,000 square metres.

raffles city hangzhou is due for realisation in 2012.

according to ben van berkel, ‘the philosophy behind the raffles city concept is to integrate mixed use in an urban context, but in such a way as to give this concept a twist; by focussing on where the urban context meets the landscape of the city. in the design of the towers the urban element of the project twists towards the landscape, whilst the landscape aspect, in turn, twists towards the urban context, thereby effecting the incorporation and consolidation of these separate elements in one formal gesture.’

raffles city, hangzhou, china by UNStudio image courtesy UNStudio

raffles city, hangzhou, china by UNStudio image courtesy UNStudio

raffles city, hangzhou, china – interior image courtesy UNStudio

model of raffles city image courtesy UNStudio

circulation of raffles city image courtesy UNStudio

program of raffles city image courtesy UNStudio