In a high-rise apartment building in Shenzhen, China, the lobby is an important buffer zone between the outside world and the interior, and also sets the tone for the design style within.
One Plus Partnership Ltd. envisioned the lobby of the Mellon Town building as a container for the spirit of Chinese culture. The lobby evokes bamboo, that ubiquitous icon of Chinese culture, with a dramatically green palette, flooring, lighting, and residents’ mailboxes. The design team also used the green/bamboo theme to stimulate thought about sustainability and green design.
The mailboxes are supported by a metal column structure that allows them to be stacked and arrayed in a circular pattern, much like bamboo stalks. Green, matte-finish powdercoating simulates the rough texture of the plant. The mailboxes also present an interesting balance between graphic hierarchy and organic order: the numbers are spread in a “random-but-easy-to-find” pattern.
Cylindrical lighting fixtures with a shiny laminate finish add a modern twist to the bamboo theme. Scored-tile flooring randomly embedded with rounds of stainless steel imitates the natural growth of the bamboo forest floor.
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Design Team:
Ajax Law Ling Kit, Virginia Lung
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Jury Comments:
“This project addresses an interesting design problem and an area that is often overlooked. A playful and compelling idea, with an interesting spatial threshhold.”