zaha hadid architects: guangzhou opera house

‘guangzhou opera house’ by zaha hadid architects image courtesy roy zhuang

‘guangzhou opera house’ by zaha hadid is nearing completion with a projected opening date of early 2011. the 70,000 m2 complex rests at the heart of the city’s cultural sites development, establishing a close relationship with the pearl river to the south. featuring two volumes wrapped in a triangulated skin of concrete, glass, and steel, the project aims to enhance urban functions by opening access to the riverside and dock. the resulting design serves as an urban and iconic gateway while establishing guangzhou as one of asia’s cultural epicenters.

triangulated, structural skin image courtesy puikincz

the spine and structural frame of the faceted skin is a dominant element in the interior space: the lobby, entrance, and circulation area interacts with the dynamic treatment, moving and guiding the visitors throughout the volume. the many levels provide sight lines into the main atrium space, establishing a sense of connection and orientation within the opera house. in addition to the 1,800-seat grand theatre, the complex hosts a multifunction hall, a number of auxiliary facilities and support premises.

(left) entrance lobby (right) staircase images courtesy roy zhuang

main circulation space image courtesy puikincz

multifunctional hall image courtesy roy zhuang

hallway image courtesy roy zhuang

grand theatre image courtesy zaha hadid architects photo © virgile simon bertrand

exterior ramp image courtesy roy zhuang

parking space below image courtesy triplefivedrew

entrance plaza image courtesy triplefivedrew

between the two volumes image courtesy triplefivedrew

detail of skin image courtesy triplefivedrew

reflecting pond outside image courtesy pavel vasyliev

entrance at night image courtesy pavel vasyliev

exterior ramp lit up image courtesy pavel vasyliev

entrance image courtesy pavel vasyliev

design team: design: zaha hadid with patrik schumacher project director: woody k.t. yao project leader: simon yu project team: jason guo, yang jingwen, long jiang, ta-kang hsu, yi-ching liu, zhi wang, christine chow, cyril shing, filippo innocenti, lourdes sanchez, hinki kwong, junkai jiang competition team (first stage): filippo innocenti, matias musacchio, jenny huang, hon kong chee, markus planteu, paola cattarin, tamar jacobs, yael grifantini, flavio la gioia, nina safainia, fernando vera martin henn, achim gergen, graham modlen, imran mahmood competition team (second stage): cyril shing, yansong ma, yosuke hayano, adriano de gioannis, barbara pfenningstorff

consultants: local architect: guangzhou pearl river foreign investment, architectural designing institute (guangzhou, china) structure: SHTK (shanghai, china); guangzhou pearl river, foreign investment architectural designing institute facade: KGE engineering (zhuhai, china) building services: guangzhou pearl river foreign investment, architectural designing institute M&E: max fordham and partners (london, UK); OK design group theatre: ENFI (beijing, china) lighting: beijing light & view (being, china) acoustic: marshall day acoustics (melbourne, australia) project management: guangzhou municipal construction group co. ltd. (guangzho, china) cost: guangzhou jiancheng engineering costing consultant, office ltd. (guangzhou, china) principal contractor: china construction third engineering bureau co. ltd. (guangdong, china)

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