Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects - Photo by Wu Qingshan - Courtesy of CLOU architects.

Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects – All photos by Wu Qingshan – Courtesy of CLOU architects.

Architecture – Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects is the new colourful, stepped, mixed-use complex in Shanghai’s Chengyang District, developed by Vanke as a hub for innovative businesses.

Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects - Photo by Wu Qingshan - Courtesy of CLOU architects.

The site accommodates a bookstore, a small city hall, and retail spaces that provide meeting places for cross-cultural communications. “The design reflects our ongoing exploration of stepped architecture and office and commercial design integration.” CLOU architects’ founder Jan Clostermann told Archipanic.

Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects - Photo by Wu Qingshan - Courtesy of CLOU architects.

Indeed, the studio has carved the 10,000 square meter massing into a sculptural form, with stepped terraces and arched facades for a proposal that shifts character from different viewpoints. The result is a complex featuring human-scale terraces conceived as an extension of the office areas. “Varying semi-private spaces are curated into a series of vertical landscapes, providing the flexibility to host creative outdoor events.”

Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects - Photo by Wu Qingshan - Courtesy of CLOU architects.

The design responds to the predominately small and medium-sized companies and young creative retailers in the office park. Opening what would traditionally be a closed building, the firm created exciting paths of exploration and vibrant social spaces.

Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects - Photo by Wu Qingshan - Courtesy of CLOU architects.

The volumetric form resembles stepped boxes paired with geometric windows, expressing a rational beauty. The façade design plays with shades of pink and silver which, from a distance, creates a luminous effect that animates one approach.

Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects - Photo by Wu Qingshan - Courtesy of CLOU architects.

Founded by Jan Clostermann, CLOU is a Beijing-based award-winning international design studio with multi-disciplinary expertise in master planning, architecture, interiors, and landscapes. The team designs its projects around community connectors and social spaces on various scales. “We strive to create projects that positively influence the people involved in the making of the immediate and extended environment and the communities that occupy and inhabit them.” Adds Jan Clostermann.

Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects - Photo by Wu Qingshan - Courtesy of CLOU architects.

All photos by Wu Qingshan – Courtesy of CLOU architects.

Qingdao Business Park by CLOU Architects - Photo by Wu Qingshan - Courtesy of CLOU architects.