We cherish places like this—spaces filled with friends who embrace life and design. Every ray of sunshine inspires freedom and creativity, where everyone feels free to express themselves, focus on their work, and live harmoniously in a garden-like environment. This is the vision behind Utobon.
△ Project video
Yijing Architectural Design’s new studio is located in Shenzhen’s Xili Vanke Cloud Design Commune, an office community surrounded by lush greenery and vibrant energy. Here, you can enjoy a stroll along the park boardwalk with a cup of coffee, discuss ideas with friends on the rooftop, or lie on the grass watching clouds drift by. Working here feels like being in a garden—full of poetic and lively scenes. The courtyard, bathed in sunlight, is covered with fine white stones. Laifu, the studio’s adopted cat, loves climbing trees and playing with shadows, then resting peacefully in the sun. The office space occupies the upper floor, while the ground floor houses a coffee shop, shared stairways, and an exhibition hall. This sunny, green environment perfectly blends work and life—an ideal office space we aspire to create.
△ Daytime exterior view
△ Spatial function analysis
Before moving in, we planned to operate the space as an exhibition hall, leaving a beam of light and 24 columns with varying angular spacing throughout. Inspired by the surroundings, the concept of creating an “office in a park, a park in an office” emerged.
We used the angles and gaps between columns to define different functional areas, designing two staggered resting boxes elevated at 6 meters to form a raised space. To preserve the central skylight’s integrity, the atrium was transformed into a dry landscape garden with white fine stones, echoing the park outside. This allows natural light to cascade down, forming a “staircase of light” leading to the second-floor office space.
△ Axonometric diagram
The first floor naturally accommodates spaces for employees to read, rest, and attend exhibitions. At the entrance, a shared staircase nearly 5 meters wide and 2.5 meters high seats around 30 people, ideal for hosting small design lectures. The numerous pillars, once intrusive, have been cleverly minimized, replaced by light and open space that blend seamlessly with the environment, airflow, and sunlight. This creates a vibrant “cultural and creative park” filled with lively, interactive work scenes.
△ Hall
△ Hall
△ Staircase
Next to the shared staircase, the Jing · Future Exhibition Hall is divided into four sections: architecture, city, scene, and technology, displaying all of Yi Jing’s design projects from inception to the present. A VR experience hall allows visitors to virtually explore building interiors. This exhibition invites everyone visiting Yijing Studio to experience our growth and passion for design.
To the right of the exhibition hall is the café bar, where soft light and shadow filter through glass, accompanied by a warm yellow glow, creating a simple and cozy atmosphere. Our design intent was straightforward: to offer architects a space where coffee becomes a medium for intense work and brief relaxation. Here, pressure melts away, conversations flow freely, and inspiration sparks in the blend of coffee, design, and life.
△ Exhibition hall
△ Café
△ Café bar
△ Bar details
Café in the Sunshine
As dusk falls, the interior space transforms into a more pure and transparent environment. Architects descend the stairs, shifting from work mode to relaxation—enjoying meals at the café, petting cats, and reading books to unwind after a day’s labor.
△ Hall
△ Café
△ Cat and resting box
△ Workplace
△ Office
△ Meeting room
Behind the exhibition hall lies a nearly 50-square-meter “shared space” dedicated to employee gatherings and table tennis. Visitors often find it surprising that the leisure area for staff is larger than the office space itself. Our hope is that employees come to work feeling happy, able to look up and bask in sunlight throughout the day. As modern urban work hours extend, we believe work can be more than tedious—it can shape a beautiful lifestyle filled with subtle emotions and warmth. By integrating work, life, nature, and creativity, we aim to establish a new, humane way of working.
△ Entertainment room
△ Night view
△ First floor plan
△ Second floor plan
Project Information
Project Name: One Environment Space
Architectural Firm: Yijing Architectural Design
Office Website: __AI_ST_URL_0__
Contact Email: __AI_S_SC0__
Project Completion Year: 2020
Building Area: 820 square meters
Project Address: A307, Area A, Vanke Cloud Design Community, Intersection of Dashi 2nd Road and Chuangke Road, Xili Street, Nanshan District, Shenzhen
Lead Architect: He Mincong
Chief Architect Email: __AI_S_SC0__
Design Team: Wei Jiaxing and Tang Ting
Photographer: Huang Shuying
Photographer’s Email: __AI_S_SC0__
Must log in before commenting!
Sign Up