Part of an international competition for 12 sites located in central Beijing, the 42-storey Dougong Tower (Z13) draws upon ancient Chinese joinery and wood construction to integrate 120,000 m2 of office and residential space around a dynamic series of sunlit open spaces.
A 'Dougong' is a unique structural element of interlocking wooden brackets, one of the most important elements in traditional Chinese architecture. Its construction is characterised by wooden blocks and brackets that 'join' and 'interlock' in a visual play of solid and void to create dramatic structures and roofs. The design of Dougong Tower adapts these principles of 'joining' and 'interlocking' to drive the architecture, structure the program, and frame the sustainability concepts of the project. The result is a kinetic vision of a 'city-within-a-city' and a sophisticated and diversified 24/7 building that brings together work, life and play.
The interlocking of different spaces (residential, workplace, retail) as 'blocks' will:
- maximise flexibility - lease spans, ceiling heights, safety
- optimise living and working environments - controlled
solar exposure, park views
- respond to urban conditions - four-sided site, access to
daylight, addressing various scales.
Dynamic combinations of glass and wooden screens envelop and identify these blocks, joining iconicity with performance, and tradition with sustainability. The gaps and spaces between the interlocked blocks create a network of interstitial voids that form landscaped plateaus, vertical atriums, and majestic slot lobbies enhancing system performance. This lattice of spaces brings workers and dwellers closer to air, light, and greenery, providing opportunities for innovative programming, and simultaneously building a larger contiguous urban community.
Dougong Tower is ultimately about inspired place-making and celebrates diversity, density, flexibility, mobility and transparency through an integrated 21st century lifestyle and workplace model (or 'WorkLife' experience) where people are connected to the city, to the environment and to each other.