Nanjing, China

Envisioning a dynamic waterfront community, a low-density and lush green working-living environment, UNStudio unveils its plans for the Nanjing K.Wah G72 mixed-use development designed along with AECOM that was commissioned by K.Wah Group developers.

“The Nanjing K.Wah G72 mixed-use development will serve as a one-stop destination in which lifestyle, innovation, and work are brought together,” explains Ben van Berkel, founder, and principal architect at UNStudio. 

“It aims to be a benchmark for newly integrated urban developments in Nanjing, across the country, and beyond,” Van Berkel adds.

The new K.Wah G72 mixed-use project is set along the urban center and the economic development axes in Hexi New District and is connected to the Metro Rail Transit to the northwest and the coast to the south.

These green public spaces encourage socializing, event organization, and creativity, and enable building users, visitors, and creative professionals to experience new ways of living, while also providing a leisurely sanctuary to a fast-paced life. 

Creating a “lifestyle waterfront community” is at the core of UNStudio’s proposal for the K.Wah G72 mixed-use development.

The communities that have historically lived by Nanjing City’s Qinhuai River inspired the design.

By making full use of the resources along this central waterway, riparian low-density podiums, and green terraces create a waterfront community that continues this cultural and urban heritage.

This waterfront community also propels Nanjing and the surrounding regions as an exciting cultural venue.

As the ancient capital of the six Chinese dynasties, Nanjing has a rich cultural history.

UNStudio’s design strategy for K.Wah G72 development adopts this history and incorporates it into the city’s embrace of contemporary art.

As such, the UCCA Centre for Contemporary Art will be introduced and form the core public space for the arts within the community and will provide a new venue to showcase Nanjing’s culture and art on the world stage.

The streamlined and rhythmic design of the Art Centre supports a sense of togetherness within the community and fosters a more creative atmosphere.

In the future, the art venue will host a variety of international cultural and artistic events, exhibitions, and social activities, creating a new, ambitious cultural venue that innovatively intertwines public and semi-private programs for visitors and the general public alike. 

The proposal for K.Wah G72 aims to be a landmark in sustainability and future-proof design in China.

Well-being is at the center of the design, as well as the incorporation of technology to enhance the sustainability, public welfare, and adaptive nature of the different plots.

From the outset, UNStudio’s design strategy adopted active energy-saving technologies, such as natural ventilation, HVAC system, and solar photovoltaic panels (roof or facade), to lower the energy demands of the building.

The office towers will also use prefabricated components as well as a modular supporting structure.

Project: Nanjing K.Wah G72
Architects: UNStudio
Design Team: Ben van Berkel, Hannes Pfau with Garett Hwang, Guomin Lin, and Bin Fu, Alexander Meyers, Kaisi Hsu, Maya Calleja, Harshdeep Arora, Tsungyen Hsieh, Matt Burdalski, Peter Malaga, Craig Yan, Junya Huang, Yu Zhao, Yang Xu, Liang Yu, Hal Chen, Joanna Wang, Andres Monis, Lawrence Ma, with Kyle Chou, Dongbo Han, Ujjal Roy, Mimmo Barbaccia, Diego Ramirez, Ami Nigam, Wei Huang, Dmitry Seregin, Pedro Manzano Ruiz, Yufeng Tu, Zhenyu Yang, and Yubang Wu
Landscape Architects: AECOM
Structure Engineer: Thornton Tomasetti
Renderings: UNStudio