We talked about things heating up in the Pearl River Delta in a recent post, and it’s not just in the region’s main cities where modern lifestyle manifests in many forms. Foshan is situated only an hour’s drive away from Guangzhou, and although it’s dwarfed by the latter in terms of population and GDP, it pitches in with one China’s leading hi-tech economic zones. The region’s fast-paced transformation into what’s likely to become the planet’s first mega city, affects every nook and cranny, and is also clearly visible here. The Zhaoyang O Cube, a soaring monolithic structure in the heart of Foshan, bears all the hallmarks of urban redevelopment, featuring high-end apartments for young urban dwellers, office space, and on ground floor level, plenty of shops. Perched on the upper floors is an eponymous, newly opened workspace that ticks all our boxes.
Designed by local architecture practice Black Home, the venue occupies 1,450 sqm. (15,608 sq.ft.), and makes shameless use of its concrete shell. Upon entering, a latticed reception desk and matching backdrop is the first section visitors encounter, followed by a lounge with comfy sofas. An abundance of protruding light fixtures and two large canvases add visual drama to the otherwise austere setting. Left and right of the reception desk runs a corridor leading to all of Zhaoyang O Cube‘s other spaces, and overhead, extending in the same directions, a band of colourful tubes run along the ceiling, each one leading to a specific section. Next to rooms with workspaces along the corridor, the place also features an auditorium that’s flanked on both sides by glass-encased meeting rooms.
Zhaoyang O Cube
52 Chaoan Nan Lu (Chancheng)
528012 Foshan
Publishers Note
Just to be clear – superfuture® is a design blog and not a political commentator. No surprise there. The scope of our content has always been global and borderless, however that can often mean covering projects in countries where we will not agree with the politics or actions of those countries. In a world that’s as screwed up as ever right now, the focus of our support is to those designers, architects and other creatives who aim to make the world a more liveable one – as opposed to people that try their hardest to destroy it. So if a project hits our desk and we like it based on its design credentials, we may choose to publish regardless of its location or creators nationality. superfuture® has always been inclusive and hopes for all current wars, aggression, violence, hate and extremism to end.