Project Overview

Sunac • One Central Park is a residential property developed by Sunac, which is located in Hohhot — the capital of Inner Mongolia, China. It inherits the value system of Sunac's renowned development series "One Sino Park", and aims to set the standard for residences in the local area. Based on the concept of "Integration of the traditional and modern", the project combines modern and classical aesthetics as the design DNA to create an upscale residential community.
Situated at Ruyi District which enjoys favorable natural environment and convenient transportation, the project occupies a plot of nearly 70,000 sqm, and has a total construction area of 189,000 sqm. The overall planning and design takes Chinese traditional ritual order of returning home as guidance, incorporates the symmetric layout of traditional architectures, and conveys cultural richness of the magnificent residential development.

Project Commissioner

Sunac

Project Creator

GOA

Project Brief

The project extracts traditional culture of Northwest China and translates it into unique design languages to express spatial connotations. It draws on traditional Chinese ritual order of returning home. At the main entrance of the development, a long-span gate structure is set to manifest the "ritual order" spirit of returning home. Besides, a "lobby" is set on the central axis, which enables the occupants to switch between socializing and returning home and shows great courtesy to them.
The demonstration area is situated at the entrance of the central axis, mainly composed of a courtyard, a pool and a veranda. The two gateways of the demonstration area enclose a transitional space, which generates a sense of formality, shows fusion of solidness and void and allows transition from noise to tranquility. The waterscape is magnificent and has a sense of order. The three layers of water platforms are recessed one after, which reflect the sales center and produce an enchanting view. A pathway crosses the waterscape on the right side, providing fantastic experiences. The sales center has a full-height veranda, which features dry-hang stones inlaid with golden metal, appearing upright and dignified.

Project Innovation/Need

The interior architectural spaces adopt minimalist design, which are laid out based on a north-west axis and architectural functions. The two-storey sales center has a full-height lobby, the arched ceiling of which presents flexible visual effects. Mirrors above the property model display area create reflections, making the space more vivid. The spiral staircase is a visual highlight, which enriches the space.
The sales area is connected to show flats via a veranda. The veranda is an enclosed space protected from wind and rain throughout the year. Its exterior wall is a combination of glass and stone materials, which allows indoor and outdoor visual interaction.
The show flats are simplistic, elegant and aesthetic, with the dining area and living room integrated into a whole. Several circulation routes greatly extend the interiors and broaden the field of vision. The walls have a neat and simplistic form. Complemented by landscape, the show flats appear indistinctly. Based on the principle of incorporating nature, the landscape design combines various plants, rocks, pathways and delicate ornaments, thereby achieving balance between human and nature.
The long wall inside the veranda space is made of glass, and the inner walls on left and right sides are formed by both glass and metal grilles, all of which maximize the building's transparency. The exterior walls adopt blue stone materials to showcase the building's sedate impression. The veranda, glass curtain walls and reflective pool echo each other, and the water surface reflects the architecture, which visually extends it at vertical level.

Design Challenge

Inner Mongolia is one of the cradles of traditional Chinese culture and the home to ethnic minority groups in ancient Northern China. Ethnic Mongols occupy the largest percentage of the population in this region, who have long lived a nomadic life and taken yurts as dwellings. The project aims to bring modern architectural concepts to the region. The greatest challenge lies in how to perfectly combine modern architectural structures with traditional aesthetic symbols. The design needs to take account into local traditional aesthetics, climate and living habits, whilst introducing modern concepts to the architectural design and utilizing modern technology to enhance traditional techniques.

Sustainability

The exterior walls utilize three-layer insulating galls, thermal and low-carbon materials, in order to improve thermal insulation and energy saving of the buildings. Inner Mongolia has a relatively cold climate, and nearly half time of the year requires heating supply. Considering this, the project attaches great importance to energy saving and environment protection, hoping to advocate a low-carbon lifestyle.