CTBUH President Returns to China, Speaking in Four Cities and Sitting on International Design Competition Jury

Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Wuxi, and Shanghai

3 - 14 June 2023

 

Monday, June 5. K11 ATELIER King's Road, location of the Hong Kong event, kindly sponsored by New World Development Company Limited and Feng Seng Enterprises (FSE) Engineering Group Ltd.
Around 200 attendees joined for the CTBUH event in Hong Kong.
CTBUH Hong Kong Chapter Chair, Vincent Tse, welcomes the attendees to the event.
CTBUH Asia Regional Director, Peng Du delivers opening remarks and an introduction to the CTBUH Asia conference.
CTBUH President Dr. Antony Wood gives a presentation on the "10 Principles for New High Rise Architecture."
A brief Q&A with the audience after the presentations.
A networking reception followed the presentations.
Following the event, Dr. Wood joined the CTBUH Hong Kong chapter for dinner.
Wednesday, June 7. Shenzhen Avary Holdings Headquarters, the location of the Shenzhen event, kindly sponsored by Avary Holding (Shenzhen) Co., Limited and Gensler.
Speakers of the event pose for a group photo. From left to right: Jiaqi Qu, CTBUH China Office Associate Director; Dr. Peng Du, CTBUH Asia Regional Director; Antony Wood, CTBUH President; Hongying Sun, General Manager, Avary Holding Headquarters; Yun Xue, Vice President, Gensler.
CTBUH China Office Associate Director Jiaqi Qu, says some words to open the event.
Hongying Sun, General Manager, Avary Holding Headquarters, delivers a welcome address.
CTBUH Asia Regional Director Dr. Peng Du, delivers opening remarks and an introduction to the CTBUH Asia conference that will be held in November 2023.
CTBUH President Dr. Antony Wood gives a presentation on "10 Principles for New High Rise Architecture."
Yun Xue, Vice President, Gensler, shares the design of Shenzhen Avary Holding Headquarters.
Attendees network during the reception after the presentation.
Guests attend the building tour after the reception.
On top of the building is a roof garden styled in traditional Chinese garden landscaping.
Thursday, June 8. One Shenzhen Bay, designed by KPF.
Thursday, June 8. Dr. Wood and Dr. Du with representatives from One Shenzhen Bay in front of the CTBUH signboard recognizing the project as having the Highest Concert Hall in the World.
Thursday, June 8. Dr. Wood and Dr. Du visit Citymark Center. This 388 meter building, designed by KPF, was completed in 2022.
Dr. Wood with senior representative from Citymark Center in front of the CTBUH signboard recognizing the project as the Tallest Building Completed in the World in 2022.
Model of Shenzhen city in the showroom of Citymark Center with view of city in the background.
Friday, June 9. CTBUH President Antony Wood and fellow jury panel members for Wanshan Lake Eco-Tech City International Design Competition.
CTBUH President Antony Wood gives jury comment at Wanshan Lake Eco-Tech City International Design Competition.
Photo of jury panel with models of proposed designs in front.
Judges deliberate at Wanshan Lake design competition in Wuxi.
Monday, June 12. Shanghai Tower, location of the Shanghai event, kindly sponsored by Shanghai Tower Construction & Development and Otis.
Dr. Wood with Ming Yan, owner representative for Shanghai Tower, in front of the CTBUH signboard recognizing the project as the Tallest building in China and Second Tallest Building in the World.
Attendees listen to presentation given at the event in Shanghai Tower.
Ming Yan, Secretary of the Party Committee; Deputy General Manager, Shanghai Tower Construction & Development, welcomes everyone attending the event.
Sally Loh, President, Otis China, delivers some opening remarks.
CTBUH President Dr. Antony Wood presents the "10 Principles for New High Rise Architecture."
Visitors enjoy networking during the reception.
The outdoor garden with the tall buildings in Lujiazui in the background of the Shanghai reception.
Dr. Wood and Mr. Jianping Gu in the showroom office of Shanghai North Bund Center, which recently broke ground and will be the tallest building in Puxi upon completion.
A scale model of the new Shanghai North Bund Center.
Dr. Wood and Dr. Du pose with the new dean of Tongji University, Dean Li (middle), and Professor Zhendong Wang (left).
Dr. Wood visits CTBUH China Office at Tongji University in Shanghai.
Dr. Wood and members of the CTBUH China office team pose with the head of Thomas Heatherwick's studio in Shanghai, Leo Cheung.
Heatherwick Studios' 1000 Trees project in Shanghai, now in phase two of construction.
Interior of 1000 Trees project, the shopping mall component.
Completed Phase One of the 1000 Trees project, a shopping mall.

 

 

In early June 2023, CTBUH President Dr. Antony Wood and CTBUH Asia Regional Director Dr. Peng Du traveled to China and spoke at events in four cities: Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Wuxi and Shanghai. At each event, the CTBUH mission and upcoming CTBUH conferences in Asia were introduced, and Wood gave a presentation on "10 Principles for a New High Rise Architecture." In Wuxi city, Wood sat on the jury for the Wanshan Lake Eco-Tech City International Design Competition.

On Monday, 5 June, the first event was held to an audience of 200+ people at K11 ATELIER King's Road in Hong Kong and generously sponsored by New World Development Company Limited and Feng Seng Enterprises (FSE) Engineering Group Ltd. CTBUH Hong Kong Chapter Chair Vincent Tse gave the opening remarks and introductions. Du spoke afterwards on the upcoming CTBUH Regional Asia Conference to be held in Hong Kong and Shenzhen at the end of 2023 and opportunities for involvement. Wood then spoke about the changing skyline of Hong Kong and gave his presentation on "10 Principles for a New High Rise Architecture." A networking reception with drinks followed. After the event, Wood and Du had dinner with the CTBUH Hong Kong chapter.

 

7 June, Shenzhen. CTBUH President Antony Wood presents to audience "10 Principles for a New High Rise Architecture."

 

Traveling next to Shenzhen, on Wednesday afternoon, 7 June, a second event was held at Shenzhen Avary Holding Headquarters and generously sponsored by Avary Holding (Shenzhen) Co., Limited and Gensler. Hongying Sun, General Manager, Avary Holding Headquarters, welcomed everyone in attendance. Similar to the previous event, Du and Wood spoke to the audience on CTBUH's mission, the upcoming conferences, and additionally shared their recent experience in Hong Kong. A networking reception accompanied Wood’s presentation. A small group tour of the building followed with the architect represented by Yun Xue, Vice President, Gensler who talked about the design for the building that was completed in 2022. Key features were pointed out like a rooftop garden and operable windows, which allow natural ventilation at various times of the year.

While in Shenzhen, Wood and Du also visited Parkland Group's One Shenzhen Bay Tower 7, where, in 2019, CTBUH installed a signboard for the World's Highest Concert Hall. The performance space is surrounded by windows on three sides, offering commanding views of Shenzhen Bay and providing a dramatic backdrop for performances. Afterwards, they visited Citymark Centre, designed by KPF. This 388 meter building unveiled its CTBUH signboard Tallest Building in the World Completed in 2022 late last year.

Following Shenzhen, Wood and Du traveled to Wuxi City on Friday, June 9. There, Wood sat alongside six other jurors evaluating seven competition entries for the 27 square kilometer site in Wanshan Lake Eco-Tech City. This competition was hosted by the local municipality and featured innovative designs proposed by seven world-renowned architectural groups: Woods Bagot, Gensler, HPP, Rocco, Perkins Eastman, Obermeyer, and UNStudio.

The third event in Shanghai was held in Shanghai Tower, generously sponsored by Shanghai Tower Construction & Development and Otis. The owner representative, Ming Yan, Secretary of the Party Committee and Deputy General Manager, Shanghai Tower Construction & Development, welcomed those who came. Sally Loh, President, Otis China, also spoke and gave a brief introduction. Du and Wood related their experiences in the previous two cities and gave both their presentations. A reception was held in the room and adjacent outdoor garden afterwards, with attendees able to enjoy the skyline in Lujiazui.  

 

Heatherwick Studio's 1000 Trees Project completed Phase 1 in Shanghai.

 

The following day, Wood met with Mr. Jianping Gu, former general manager of Shanghai Tower. Having built and managed the tallest building on the Pudong side of the Huangpu River for several years, Mr. Gu has now moved on to the Shanghai North Bund Center, which recently broke ground in March of this year, and will be the tallest building on the Puxi side of the river upon completion. Mr. Gu kindly gave Wood a tour of the new project's showroom.

Wood and Du also visited the CTBUH China Office at Tongji University and met with the new dean of the school, Dean Li, and longstanding CTBUH supporter in China, Professor Zhengdong Wang. They then traveled to meet with the head of Thomas Heatherwick's Shanghai studio, Leo Cheung, and tour their fantastic 1000 Trees project, currently in its second phase of construction. 

Overall, the trip was a great success, and has built a solid foundation for both China participation in the 2023 Singapore & Kuala Lumpur Conference, and the 2023 Regional Hubs Conference to be held in Hong Kong and Shenzhen in November. 

 

Learn more and register for the CTBUH International Conference in Singapore & Kuala Lumpur here.

Learn more about the upcoming 2023 regional conferences here.