This week’s instalment of Project of the Week series features a minimal sales gallery design by 2021 SBID Awards Finalist, A.RK Interior Design.
Park Vera is by far the most iconic of Rainbow City’s project in Shanghai. It is also the last lot of residential development in the district of Ruihong, Shanghai. Shui On Land’s vision was 20 years in the making. Their aim for Park Vera gallery is to use this sales gallery to showcase their commitment to the community, transforming and developing this district into the most sought after postal code in Shanghai.
The interior of the sales gallery for the residential development Park Vera is designed to reflect the journey taken over 20 years to bring about this dramatic transformation. Design inspiration has evolved through the years and one might say they have come full circle. Targeted for younger demographics whose life ethos is very much different from their parents – they seek personal fulfilment and socialising is a very important part of their lives, their manner is filled with enthusiasm and creativity.
For inspiration for this project designers looked to one of the happiest regions in the world – Scandinavia. To pursue contentment and well-being is the Danish way of life and here A.RK Interior Design inspire to inject some Lagom and Hygge into our lives.
SBID Awards Category: Property Development Asia Pacific
Practice: A.RK Interior Design
Project: Park Vera Sales Gallery
Location: Shanghai, China
Being the apex and the last lot of development for Rainbow City (mix-development), the client’s goal and wish was to put their best foot forward, to instil the buyer’s confidence in their development and to have bragging rights of having one of the best residential development in this area.
We looked at the demographics and the evolving needs of the population and gave the client a couple of design concept proposals. Finally settled with a Scandinavian theme, we injected elements of Danish lifestyle concept of ‘hygge’ and Swedish way of life ‘lagom’ to showcase simplicity and minimalism, embracing the Scandinavian mentality that moderation and happiness are intertwined.
The extensive presence of seagulls in this sales gallery reflects the developer’s pursuit of perfection, as inspired by Jonathan Livingston Seagull, a Richard Bach book.
We have to say the pandemic was the biggest hurdle we faced during this project. With a design team in Singapore and the project in Shanghai, we had to pull all the stops and get used to travel and working with restrictions of not being able to supervise the build in person. The client’s design team was very understanding and has come to quickly realise that working remotely might be the new way forward. The availability of technology hugely alleviated the lack of in-person consultation.
Going above and beyond solving design challenges, the highlight of this project speaks volume of the inter-city, cross border collaboration that was only possible with technology and the trust given by our clients. The shared visions that the client and designer team have is only possible with a multi-disciplined teams that work well and have the same end-goal in mind.
SBID awards is one the industry’s most respected and sought after accolade. Being part of this prestigious award raises the credibility of our company and our brand. This award will also further enhance our standing with our client.
Questions answered by Agatha Teng, Creative Director and Partner, A.RK Interior Design.
We hope you feel inspired by this week’s design!
If you missed the last instalment of Project of the Week, featuring an arty biophilic Oriental restaurant design by Deckora Design, click here to read it.
This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features the SBID Award winning project for Development Sales Centres. For this project, Matrix Design was able to combine traditional elements to imbue the contemporary space with historical elegance. With neat sequences of stone wall stitching, splicing and carefully planned lighting, the space evokes a strong sense of luxury. Applying geometric vision to the use of shapes, site lines and the square caisson ceiling feature elevates the environment with powerful perspectives, while decorations like the floating book pages makes it feel like the visitor is entering a new dimension; like the pathway of a time traveller, entering into a timeless space.
SBID Awards: Development Sales Centre winner sponsored by Vessel Gallery
Company: Matrix Design
Project: Gemdale Fenghua International Sales Center Nanjing
Location: Jiangsu, China
What was the client’s brief?
Fenghua series is one of the three high-end product lines of Gemdale Group. This project is located in Jiangbei New District, Nanjing, China. The design concept of the client was to build an art museum with a modern, Oriental aesthetic to experience international fashion, which is differentiated and artistic on the basis of traditional Chinese design and style.
What inspired the interior design of the project?
In the whole project design, light is the main source of inspiration. As a poetic architectural language, it also becomes a kind of virtual material of space composition. The designers want to make the space full of personality and fully mobilise the emotion of customers through the ingenious construction. The Pantheon cast light from the hollow of the dome, creating a mysterious atmosphere. This classic work makes people feel the real existence of space. Based on this effect, we presented a scene of light shooting into the interior above the sand table area at the centre of the project.
What was the toughest hurdle your team overcame during the project?
The difficulty of the design in this case was the choice of style. In order to achieve this style, the design team needed to find ways to relieve the ‘cold’ feeling of the interior which is due to the white/neutral colour scheme, vastness of spaces and modern architectural language, whilst staying true to the original design brief; to add cultural character.
What was your team’s highlight of the project?
Elements of traditional culture can be found incorporated into the design which endows the modern space with historic elegance. Achieving this brief was certainly a highlight, however key features in the design also stood out to me. The geometry and grandness of the square caisson ceiling is powerful and energetic with a complex layered structure extending up into the dome. Also, the installation of floating book pages cascading down the staircase as it creates the feeling that you are time-travelling into a new, timeless space.
Why did you enter the SBID Awards?
We entered through the recommendation of our culture agency DESIGNKEEPER who informed us of the SBID Awards and the prestige associated with this accolade. In view of the confidence and satisfaction of this project, and the hope to know our own level and shortcomings through a fair competition with excellent design teams from all over the world, we participated in this competition.
Questions answered by Liu Jianhui, Wang Guan and Wang Zhaobao of Matrix Design
If you missed last week’s Project of the Week featuring SBID Award winners for Restaurant Design with the playful charm and intoxicating narrative of famous Italian chef, Massimo Bottura, click here to see more.
We hope you feel inspired by this week’s Development design! Let us know what inspired you #SBIDinspire
SBID Awards 2019 | Development Sales Centre Winner sponsored by Vessel Gallery
This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a project with a core focus on sustainability and the future whilst using complex, architectural elements to create multi-dimensional spaces and structural intricacy. From the architectural planning and design through to the rational planning and design of the layout of the building, it was key to prioritise aspects of sustainability such as achieving low energy consumption, high energy efficiency, less pollution and minimising the use of non-renewable resources. At the same time, in the design process, new material technologies such as various types of membrane that meet EU environmental standards, have been used to achieve harmonious co-existence between man and nature.
Company: MYP Design
Project: Chengdu Zhongzhou Mileage Sales Center
Project Location: Chengdu, China
The brief was to design a great space which is creative and in line with the high-end positioning of the project. What’s more, the purpose of the project is to serve as a sales office which the client hopes can play an effective role in helping the sales of real estate, so this is a space to create trust with the buyer, effective communication, and host positive interaction between people.
This project has the ultimate advantage of high elevation with vast open spaces and high ceilings. The concept of interior ‘architecture’ was used as the preface in the initial conception. Using structural elements to fill empty spaces with curved lines and rectangular structures, a streamline metope unfolds as the central feature at the entrance to create depth and interest. At the bar area, an array of acrylic rods and deep bronze installation in the middle enhance the visual extension and bring about a new attitude. With the geometric modelling of the truss structure, the bar acts as a focal point which abstracts another meaning to connecting within the space.
The biggest hurdle was to make sure our design paid respect the space itself whilst aiming to introduce more creative thinking into the space with complex dimensional structural elements to inspire guests and reflect the highest quality of design intricacy.
The change of facade brought about by the interlaced stair skin creates a change in the abstract nature of the project, with a warp and weft effect. Through such expression, the treatment of stair entrance is strengthened. An ‘experience’ is felt as guests are passing through with the changes in light, entering into a giant, dimensional model and experiencing the raw sculptural tension which surrounds them. The streamline shape hanging high in the air not only forms the carrier of light, but also guides the space. The stark contrast between this space and the next creates a more powerful impact as guests move through the building, using the injection of vibrant furniture and bright colours in other zones to inspire a different mood and atmosphere.
Why did you enter the SBID International Design Awards?
SBID is a design competition that is widely spread and has substantial influence around the world. Of course, it is also a high-quality competition. We hope to achieve recognition of our design works from SBID and enhance our brand awareness to some extent. In addition, I also hope to see and appreciate more international cutting-edge design concepts, works and designers with interesting ideas from this platform, so that we can have the opportunity to communicate and make progress together.
Questions answered by Horizon Ma, Creative Director of MYP Design
If you missed last week’s Project of the Week featuring a neutral and luxurious city apartment, designed with the upmost comfort and style, click here to see more.
We hope you feel inspired! Let us know what inspired you #SBIDinspire
MYP Design | SBID International Design Awards 2018
This week’s instalment of the #SBIDinspire interior design series features a development project with a philosophical concept, designed by Medhat Nehad. The concept revolved around guiding the client through an inspiring visual journey, from the moment they park their car to when they sign the contract to buy the property. The hierarchy starts with walking through the open landscape to the semi-transparent glass cube. Next, the dynamically designed main reception hall is approached through a ceremonially-long corridor, before the focus of the project – the parabola-shaped room – is reached. The luxurious and modern touches of natural wood and glass enhances this unique project. Special lighting effects, for both the day and the night, strengthen it further. The architect took the challenge to negotiate the design concept with the client, convincing them to go through with these ideas in the Egyptian market.
Company: Archiform Consultants
Project: Almarasem Sales and Marketing Showroom
Project Location: Cairo, Egypt
The client was at that time a new developer, embarking on a new project developing his fifth complex compound on a 158-acre plot area in a premium location in new Cairo, Egypt. The developer name is Almarasem International Development. They introduced themselves to us as they needed to enter the market as a developer with a unique new sales centre on a plot area of 4600 m2. The project scope included the following:
From the first meeting, they requested that Archiform to design the development with the concept of creating an outstanding new identity for the sales centre. The sales centre will be used to sell the client’s exclusive properties through and must therefore make an impact as their prime sales location in the market. The aim of the build will be to impress the visitors and clients with the luxurious standard of the interior and exterior spaces to reflect their superior reputation whilst capturing the new ‘look’ and ‘experience’ offered by the showrooms and offices.
As the lead designer on the project, I was inspired by organic shapes and geometrical forms. In particular, the way these forms can be intersected to create unique spaces which connect to each other in a fluid and inspiring way; offering a welcoming environment for the visitors and clients. The main idea was to create a long ‘path’ or journey for the visitor to feel like they are being invited through the building for a ceremonial welcoming. As the name of the company in Arabic language ‘Almarasem’ means to make a special process with a formal event to welcome the VIP visitors and clients through these prestigious spaces and exclusive surroundings.
We experience three main challenges throughout this project. Firstly, the project was ran under a very tight schedule as the client needed to finish the project in maximum of 100 days from design to build. The tight time lines had the team working day and night for more than 15 days continuously in order to produce the first conceptual drawings package; including photo realistic perspectives.
Secondly; as the designer I had to ensure I was effectively explaining the concept, parameters and parabolas geometric shapes to the team and the visualiser so it can be drawn correctly and illustrated clearly for the client, so they could better visualise our design ideas and approve it!
The third issue we faced, and arguably the toughest, was to convince the client that we can achieve these complicated shapes, be executed through the contractors and completed on within that very short time-frame we were set.
Being able to deliver on a project of this magnitude, whilst achieving a high quality finish; capturing the essence of the client’s company as well as executing the design and build according to plan within the time-frame we were given. This has to be the most important highlight for me.
From the time I had developed the concept of this project and as a member of the respectable SBID, I was quite sure that this project could bring great inspiration to enrich the industry of Architecture, interior design and landscape design. Also it served as a great opportunity to share my thoughts with fellow designers from all around the world, so I can be more inspired and do more in the years to come. I was so proud to be finalist for this particular project, especially as I was feeling confident that this project would measure up well against the world of design.
Questions answered by Medhat M.Nehad, President and Founder of Archiform Consulants
If you missed last week’s Project of the Week featuring a sustainable and luxuriously designed African lodge for Wilderness Safaris’ Premier Camp, click here to see more.
Archiform Consultants | SBID International Design Awards 2018
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