Cone-shaped and looking towards the Yellow Sea, Sun Tower is not your usual cultural attraction. The work of Beijing studio Open Architecture (and the winner of Best Building Site at the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2024), the project responded to an open-ended brief to create an attraction for the particular setting by the shore, and as the Yantai region has an ancient history of sun-worshipping, the architects decided to celebrate this ‘forgotten’ aspect of local culture. As a result, they sculpted a design based on the light’s trajectory through the day. A section is sliced open towards the sea, aiming to pay tribute to the sun, time and nature.
Sun Tower: guided by celestial movements
Meticulous calculations led to the building's northern edge being parallel to the noon sunlight of the equinoxes, while the entrance tunnel aligns with the sunset during the Winter Solstice. The heart of the interior has been orientated with its central axis pointing towards the sunrise over Zhifu Island on Summer Solstice.
Interviewed for the awards last year, the architects said they hoped it will become a landmark destination for its seaside city, connecting humans and nature, its ‘conscious design’ acting as a vessel for people to experience and feel in sync with their surroundings.
Practice principals Huang Wenjing and Li Hu wrote at the time: ‘Sitting on the steps under the parabolic shell, gazing into the distant ocean framed by the dramatic arch while the sounds of nature’s breathing echo gently throughout, one’s mind will gradually clear up.’
The Sun Tower was developed as a much-needed cultural hub for the region's growing population and tourism, 'fostering community engagement and raising awareness for environmental causes.' It contains an outdoor theatre, exhibition spaces, library, café and bar, and the Phenomena Space, a special multi-functional area with amazing, long views of the water beyond.
Fusing the concepts of a lighthouse, cultural centre, community hub, and sundial, the project pays 'tribute to nature and the passing of time'. To that end, Sun Tower has also taken into account sustainable architecture principles, working with passive strategies to make the scheme environmentally friendly.
Examples of this include 'reducing the building’s overall energy consumption, such as employing tunnel cooling for fresh air supply, using thermal mass to reduce indoor temperature fluctuation, improving cross-ventilation by operable openings on both shells, and removing hot air through chimney effect'.
-
How does the Lexus RZ fare in the real world? We put the electric SUV through its pacesThe Lexus RZ gives us its all on the roads of the UK, as we experience the premium-brand's high-end EV in its natural urban habitat
-
A vacant Tribeca penthouse is transformed into a bright, contemporary eyrieA Tribeca penthouse is elevated by Peterson Rich Office, who redesigned it by adding a sculptural staircase and openings to the large terrace
-
Antwerp Navigator: an unfussy guide to ‘the diamond capital of the world’A visit to Antwerp will stimulate and inspire your senses, in the best way. Here’s what we recommend
-
Raw, refined and dynamic: A-Cold-Wall*’s new Shanghai store is a fresh take on the industrial lookA-Cold-Wall* has a new flagship store in Shanghai, designed by architecture practice Hesselbrand to highlight positive spatial and material tensions
-
The Suzhou visitor centre in China is a perfect balance of contemporary innovation and cultural identityThe Suzhou visitor centre in China is designed by Tsing-Tien Making, a studio that designs to preserve cultural identity
-
Architectural Association's newest show uncovers the architectural legacies of rural China's lost generationThe Architectural Association’s ‘Ripple Ripple Rippling’ is not your typical architecture show, taking an anthropological look at the flux between rural and urban, and bringing a part of China to Bedford Square in London
-
Private museum Simple Design Archive is a ‘poetic sound sanctuary’ in ChinaSimple Design Archive, located in China’s Anhui province, is a private museum by HAS Design and Research, fostering a contemplative environment
-
Neri & Hu’s dynamic New Bund theatre takes centre stage in Shanghai’s cityscapeIn Shanghai, Neri & Hu’s New Bund 31 Performing Arts Center is a theatre offering a contemporary take on a classical archetype
-
Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024: meet the practicesIn the Wallpaper* Architects Directory 2024, our latest guide to exciting, emerging practices from around the world, 20 young studios show off their projects and passion
-
Tsing-Tien Making's approach is rooted in its 'passion' for architectureTsing-Tien Making, a young Chinese practice, joins the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024
-
'Famous but understudied': IM Pei exhibition at M+ in Hong Kong is a deep dive into the architect's legacy'IM Pei: Life is Architecture' is an exhibition celebrating the global icon; and it's just opened at M+ in Hong Kong
