MÉCA Cultural Center, France
The new 18,000 m2 MÉCA Cultural Center, creates a frame for the celebration of contemporary art, film, and performances. MÉCA, brings together three regional arts agencies – FRAC for contemporary art, ALCA for cinema, literature, and audiovisuals, and OARA for performing arts – into a loop. A series of steps and ramps lead the public directly into the 1,100 m2 outdoor urban room at the core of MÉCA. A permanent bronze sculpture depicting a half-head…
Shimao Qianhai Center, Tallest Twisted Tower in China
At nearly 300 meters tall, Shimao Qianhai Center in Shenzhen stands as the tallest twisted building in China and one of the world’s tallest structurally twisting buildings. The building tapers and simultaneously rotates, creating striking imagery with twisting curtain walls and structural columns. The positioning of the tower maximizes the views of the bay and the surrounding hills while minimizing views between towers. The tower’s rigorous geometry is based…
Zhengzhou Grand Theater, China
Chinese firm ADRI has completed a theatre in Henan Province with a metal-clad exterior. Zhengzhou Grand Theatre takes a 'boat of art sailing on the Yellow River' as the design concept. Externally, these ship-like forms intersect with one another, with the points where they meet becoming large, sheltered entrances into the foyers accessed by concrete steps. The project is a long-span building, with a length of 204m. Based on the characteristics of the architectural form,…
Mukaab Skyscraper, One of the Largest Built Structures in the World
The Saudi Arabian government has revealed the design for the Mukaab, a cube-shaped supertall skyscraper that will become the center of the New Murabba district in downtown Riyadh. The Mukaab aims to become the largest built structure in the world, measuring 400 meters in height, width, and length. The building will be situated in the North West of Riyadh, in a 19 square kilometers area. The New Murabba district will feature…
Prisma Towers, China
BIG has won a proposal to design a 300 m tall residential tower and a 250 m tall office tower for the Guiwan district, located in Qianhai, which is most commonly known as the international finance city of China. The two towers taper towards the sky at a sleek angle, forming a subtle crevice of green balconies. This gesture adds not only lush openings throughout the building but also structural efficiency. The project’s cascading terraces…
