Not unlike the visor of a baseball cap, the uppermost roof of the Tencent Tower in Guangzhou juts out almost thirty meters beyond the building itself. On every tenth story, moreover, oversized “sunroofs” extend community and green spaces into the open air.
From the podium level to its impressive apex, the high-rise adheres to the principle of the vertical city. A conglomerate formed from staircases, ramps, and courtyards orchestrates the bustling activity taking place within. This zone is accessed from the street area and the riverbank via innumerable routes. Positioned amid luxurious green spaces are cafés, exhibition areas, shops, and a large cafeteria. Via tree-lined terraces, additional routes lead downward to the basement levels, all the way to an art gallery situated below the adjacent street.
This street, which traverses the building from below, forms the central access route for both podium and high-rise. The buildings are linked by bridges, culminating in the lobby of the tower.
At every tenth level, the reinforced concrete skeleton of the tower is exposed across a two-story interval, accentuating the zones with the cantilevered platforms. Within, two reinforced concrete cores, which accommodate the internal circulation system, form the structural spine of the high-rise—making the deep projections possible. The landscaped and recreation areas found on these projections are continued vertically on the interior via stepped atria.
Situated in cubes on the four levels with “sunroofs” are conference rooms, greenhouses, and workshops. From here, landscaped staircases lead to the office levels, which are configured around the atria. The “vertical city” culminates in the panoramic view from the deeply protruding roof levels.
The tower includes an additional design highlight: installed on the undersides of the cantilevered roofs are countless LED spots—like a sparkling firmament, this luminous installation allows the tower’s contours to become indistinct at nighttime.
