01 Rudong Coexists with the City
Launched in 2021 as a new product line by Jindi Group, the “Zhi Shang” series represents a vision of the future, integrating high-tech innovations, fashion-forward design, and bold challenges. It embodies the core values of “starting from the true self and reaching the highest good,” using architecture as a medium to express a fluid, luxurious, futuristic, and refined personality.
Chengzhi Design took on the development of the residential product line for Jindi to Shangxin, unveiling the Zhishang series in Rudong. The design focuses on Generation Z customers, vacation-oriented community functions, cutting-edge spatial layouts, technological facade design, and premium material selection.
All design efforts stem from innovation and a relentless exploration of life.
Located in Rudong, under Nantong City in Jiangsu Province, this emerging city is a vital maritime gateway in Eastern China with significant development potential within the Yangtze River Delta port town cluster. The project site is positioned in Rudong’s new urban area, adjacent to the county government. This district serves as an administrative, cultural, sports, and commercial hub, boasting excellent transportation and comprehensive supporting facilities.
⊙ Urban Location
Jindi Zhishang is situated within the cultural and sports center, bridging the gap between residential areas and diverse urban amenities, closely linking commerce with daily life. The adjacent Wenfenghui commercial area provides immediate access to Rudong’s vibrant lifestyle. The expansive 10,000 square meter community center and landscaped park offer residents a sense of “life as travel, home as vacation.” Across the street lies the cultural and sports center, bringing cultural experiences and sports activities right to the doorstep.
The design leverages the symbiotic nature of megacities to craft a highly integrated, efficient, and convenient lifestyle for the future.
⊙ Location Analysis
⊙ Aerial Rendering
This project marks the launch of the “Zhi Shang” series, reflecting a lifestyle attitude and continuing Rudong’s urban character. The challenge lies in establishing identity within Rudong while integrating seamlessly. The guiding principle of “starting from the true self and ending at the ultimate goodness” serves as both design inspiration and a test.
The design centers around the symbolic motif of “urban symbiosis” represented by the wave, weaving diverse expressions into scenes and atmospheric experiences.
⊙ Storyline Planning
Wave▪ Flower Park
⊙ Rendering
The site sits between the Rudong Sports Center and nearby high-rise residences, offering a strong urban interface. It will later serve as a commercial area showcasing the style of the broader commercial district. The unique design techniques focus on creation, with a carefully curated landscape matching the theme.
At the southwest corner stands a “wave”-shaped spiritual fortress. Visitors park on a painted floor lot, pass through a distinctive themed fence, a large gathering of trees resembling ships, and the city’s sound wave fountain before reaching the project entrance.
⊙ Form Generation
⊙ Spatial Analysis
The building adopts a regular rectangular shape that fits the site, featuring a transparent box clad in ultra-white glass. The ground floor is recessed to respond to the enclosure by adjacent buildings and the urban interface. The stairs extend outside the “box,” forming a sail-like shape, with the facade adorned by metal curtain elements.
02 Strategy Draws Inspiration from the Tidal Coastline
During local research, we explored: What unique historical and cultural memories define Rudong? How can we connect the city, art, and architecture?
Choosing waves as the design theme, inspired by the gentle ripples of the Gold Coast, we discovered the Moiré pattern as our creative spark.
The Moiré pattern is a visual art form created by overlaying, rotating, and scaling multiple sets of striped graphics, much like the interplay of ripples on eastern waters.
Wave▪ Theater
The facade features 400 metal “curtain” elements supported by minimal components, forming a veil that floats outside the clean, transparent main structure. The curtain’s base uses gradually perforated aluminum panels. When perforation exceeds 50%, the metal texture visually disappears, creating a soft, mysterious effect reminiscent of a theater curtain.
By adjusting the rod lengths to create strong, dynamic curves, the curtain undulates like a wave, enhanced by floodlighting to produce stunning visual effects.
① Curve Research
We simulated various facade effects by combining differently spaced curtain rods at multiple layers. A single-layer curtain with three curves appeared sparse; rods twisted by 60 degrees formed two curves that felt monotonous. Ultimately, a double-layered curtain with three curves created clear depth and rich shadow variations.
Using mathematical modeling, the dynamic curves of “Zhi Shang” were transformed into different sine functions, mimicking the ripple diffusion.
⊙ Curve Research
Ultimately, three curtain curves with varying wave frequencies were formed. The placement of peaks and valleys was dictated by functional needs: the main entrance features three intersecting curves to create a ceremonial entrance experience, like a theater curtain slowly opening. At the building’s corner, intersecting peaks and valleys emphasize the structure’s uprightness.
② Rod Component Form Research
Focusing on details with utmost refinement, the rod shapes draw inspiration from the Olympic torch, blending modern industrial craftsmanship with the sporting spirit of Rudong.
⊙ London Olympic Torch
The torch-inspired pole reflects Rudong’s identity as a sports city. By abstracting lines and minimizing decorations, the design highlights the charm of precision manufacturing in the industrial age through exquisite details.
⊙ Rod Research
Perforations at the rod ends symbolize the Olympic flame’s spirit of hard work and progress, as well as the stars on the theater costumes. To achieve a delicate hazy glow while preserving metallic luster, various perforation rates (45%, 48%, 50%) were tested. An aluminum plate with approximately 48% front perforation was selected.
Different edge lengths (100mm, 150mm, 180mm) and chamfer sizes (8mm, 10mm, 12mm) were experimented with to create gradient and tiling effects. The final rod features a 100mm side length and a 12mm alpha chamfer.
The triangular shape expresses Zhi Shang’s power, while the curved chamfer reflects its streamlined elegance. Nearly 400 rods feature a 1-meter-high gradient perforation at the bottom, with side light strips that dance like waves under floodlighting.
③ Rod Fixing Method Research
The rod fixing approach was a major challenge. The initial goal was a visually clean connection with no visible structural links, fixing rods at a single top point. However, this method doubled rod diameter, structural plate thickness, and costs.
Considering effectiveness, cost, and operability, the inner rods are vertically fixed to the main glass curtain wall at 1.5-meter intervals. Outer rods connect through inner rods, following the curtain’s curves. This solution achieves a clean and simple visual effect.
⊙ Curtain Node
④ Perforated Panels on the North Facade
The north facade borders a residential area with anticipated heavy foot traffic. Detailed design enhances the facade’s sense of value. After testing multiple samples, a hole diameter of 10mm with 15mm edge-to-edge spacing was deemed optimal.
⊙ Perforated Plate Node
⑤ Material Research
The building’s color palette primarily features champagne gold and silver with subtle orange accents, highlighting its elegance and value. Design adjustments were made based on function: high-transparency glass is used on the first floor for display, while highly reflective glass on the second floor creates a more private space.
The eaves are clad with corrugated stainless steel plates, textured to resemble rippling water waves. The flowing light within the space evokes the shimmering surface of water, embodying a modernist aesthetic.
⊙ Elevation View
Wave▪ Trendy and Dynamic
The building consists of two floors, with the second floor primarily housing a model room and marketing office. To accommodate sand tables and negotiation areas on the first floor, a 1.5-meter excavation was made, and a 5-meter ceiling height was added, resulting in an effective height of 6.5 meters—comparable to two floors.
The remaining space is designed as a yacht-shaped mezzanine, with the lower level serving as a bar and the upper level dedicated to deep negotiation and VIP areas.
⊙ Streamline Analysis
Inside, elements inspired by the Gold Coast and waves are integrated throughout, blending soft curves with straight lines to create a visually striking and harmonious aesthetic.
⊙ Sectional Drawing
⊙ Plan View
03 Planning and Building Natural Life in Cities
The area is undergoing integrated development of commercial and residential buildings, spaced approximately 100 meters apart. A large, open community center landscape park lies at the heart, incorporating the “Wave Park” concept to create a natural, urban lifestyle. This approach fosters a symbiotic relationship between people, buildings, environment, and space.
⊙ Rendering
The fusion of a gathering-style community park with an island-style vacation villa garden energizes community life, infusing the park’s vitality and the garden’s romance to enrich social atmosphere.
⊙ General Layout Plan
The architectural design draws inspiration from yachts, evolving into L-shaped aluminum plate lines that flow through the building. The facade’s curved lines interlock, incorporating the “superfluid lines” concept from first- and second-tier cities, resulting in a highly luxurious and distinctive appearance that highlights the city’s fashionable spirit.
Conclusion
As the inaugural project of Jindi Group’s “Zhi Shang” series, the focus lies on design excellence, blending modern architectural techniques with regional design language and the cutting-edge industrial design aesthetic of luxury cars. Soft curves and straight lines intertwine to create a dynamic visual impact that culminates in the final design.
This project interprets the trendy, flashy, and elegant character of the “Zhi Shang” series with a youthful, iconic aesthetic, balancing classic and contemporary architectural temperament with a subtle luxury palette.
Project Details
Project Name: Rudong Jindi Zhishang Exhibition Center
Location: Changjiang Road, Rudong County, Nantong City, Jiangsu Province
Client: Jindi Group East China Region
Function: Exhibition Center
Building Area: 1,680 square meters
Architectural Design: Chengzhi Design
Deputy Chief Architect: Zeng Qinghua
Design Team (Residential/Exhibition Center): Li Peng, Xie Zongmin, Yu Xiaohui, Lu Suijuan, Tang Jun, Liu Yangmiu, Tianqi
Design Director (Commercial): Xue Yu
Design Team (Commercial): Zhang Zhonghong, Li Zhuqing, Zou Weidong
Landscape Design: Shenzhen Aoya Design Co., Ltd.
Interior Design: Dongmu Construction (Exhibition Center Finishing & Soft Decoration)
Construction Drawing Design: Shanghai Sanyi Architectural Design Co., Ltd.
Curtain Wall Consultant: Shanghai Anlei Curtain Wall Engineering Co., Ltd.
Design Period: August 2021 – December 2021
Completion: March 2022
Graphic Arrangement: Chengzhi Brand
Project Photography: Fanxi Vision
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