PROJECT TEAM: Carlos Arnaiz, Xiao Tan, Alden Ching, Siying Han, Yuqi Wang, Wenhao Xu, Sanxing Zhao, Marie Isabelle Ngoga
CONSULTANTS: ARUP, NSI

Taking inspiration from the structure of a plant in bloom, the Bench Tower has a system of architectural petals that protects the interior spaces while creating a new luminous icon on the skyline.  The building’s skin consists of a soft-shaped metal latticework whose profile and density change across the face of the 30-storey building. The skin is suspended  a meter out from the glass line of the building acting like a series of overlapping flower petals that both shade and cool the building.

The Bench Tower is actually five buildings in one: a below-grade event space for 1,500 people; a grand retail hall to curate the best local fashion; a 9-story parking garage; grade-A office space for multinational firm; and a home for the Bench group of companies. The cores have been separated to allow for different circulation loops to exist without unnecessary bottlenecks.

The Bench Tower stands as a demonstration of an architecture that is thinking about the forces that shape nature, beyond just the human, and in so doing harnessing some of the restorative powers of the environment to refresh our buildings with the strange and unexpected properties of the living world.