Hong Kong architectural graduate student Kenneth Cheung Shiu Lun is worried about human kind’s consumption. We are killing the earth, Lun argues, and will soon make our own kind extinct as we deplete the planet’s resources.

In Noah’s Tower, Lun has designed an architectural island where the mantra “survival of the fittest” means that those brave enough to leave land will live on into the future. Noah’s Tower, playing off the story of Noah’s Ark, comes with a tagline: “It’s time to face it. Architecture without ground.”

As the earth’s land disappears, refugees gather on temporary floating islands before arriving to the Noah’s Tower complex, which is a series of towers connected by bridges that float and move with the waves and are interchangeable to allow for new linkages as the city grows.

The bridges linking the towers serve a special purpose: not only do they connect the expatriate community, but they serve as a link for residents to the world they left behind. The floating bridges are comprised of two levels, the bottom serving for traffic and the top covered in trees, bringing a connection to nature and the environment that has been lost for residents. Read the rest of this entry »

The latest and greatest in recent skyscraper design tends to be vertically homogenous and self-referential, only mixing program at the base, and responding to the immediate context ornamentally. The Shenzhen Interchange competition entry by WORKac defies this mode of apparatus by embracing a new kind of density-one that is more mixed and vertical. Shenzhen, one of the fastest growing cities in China is the ideal location for this digression, as its exponential growth necessitates a new agenda for skyscraper design. Read the rest of this entry »

Lee Sang-ho, graduate student from Busan, South Korea, has designed the “Vertical Sprial,” a skyscraper that will serve as the “green energy landmark tower” for the city of Busan.

Busan is the second largest in Korea, and is the largest port city. It is also considered to have the second-largest solar radiation levels in the country, and the highest wind levels, making the building perfectly situated to utilize solar and wind technologies to generate energy.

The building will generate energy through several means, including the rotation of solar energy panels that will move throughout the day to capture the maximum sunlight in the day.

The building will have an observation deck from which to admire the ocean views. The tower is split into three sections according to use, and each section has a cafeteria to accommodate the people working there. Spiral walkways will feature greenery, and twist throughout the building to create calming paths to lift the spirits of those inside. Read the rest of this entry »