The Shanghai Pudong Jiahua E18 residential project, Jiayingfeng, has recently been completed and handed over. Situated in the heart of Lujiazui’s riverside area in Pudong, it lies north of the Lujiazui International Financial Center, south of the Houshi Expo and Houtan radiation belt, east of Century Park, and directly across the river from the Bund Financial Center.
Within this dense and complex urban environment, a unique form of collective housing has been developed. The site presented challenging conditions including strict regulations on boundary setbacks, orientation, lighting, landscaping, and integration with surrounding buildings. Unlike typical repetitive Chinese real estate designs, the architects took a sensitive, site-specific approach—actively exploring innovative residential paradigms that blend modernity and futurism, creating a distinctive riverside living experience.
The exploration of urban spaces, central to daily life, remains a vital subject in contemporary architecture. Early 20th-century pioneers like Le Corbusier and Moses Ginzburg advocated for innovative residential designs and ideal urban spatial forms—concepts that continue to influence modern living environments.
China’s rapid real estate development has often overlooked diversity and innovation in housing, resulting in many homogeneous and standardized dwellings disconnected from design creativity. The E18 residential project in Lujiazui stands as a deliberate attempt to innovate within stringent site constraints. Elements such as light, orientation, view corridors, and setbacks serve as defining factors shaping the building’s form. The overall volume is sculpted by sunlight, crafting a distinctive urban landscape unique to this era and location.” – Jiang Ping, FAIA, Chief Architect at EID Arch
Design for the Pudong Jiahua E18 began in 2013 under lead architect Jiang Ping. Initially responsible for concept and schematic design at Kaida, Jiang later led the EID Arch team through scheme optimization and detailed design phases. The site is surrounded by communities from various historical eras, creating a mixed and complex urban fabric. Residential clusters range from typical 1980s and 1990s Shanghai neighborhoods to newly built neoclassical-style high-rises, generating a diverse yet harmonious environment. Balancing the urban spatial relationships and the interests of neighboring residents while introducing an innovative residential model presented both a challenge and an opportunity for the design team.
The innovative residential design for Jiahua E18 carefully navigates strict site limitations. New buildings must minimize sunlight impact on neighboring homes, seamlessly integrate with the environment, and avoid blocking their own light and views. This complex balancing act led to a single “C”-shaped layout responding to the adjacent communities.
Building heights gradually increase to optimize sunlight access, forming a terraced, canyon-like form that brings natural light deep into each residence while evoking traditional Chinese landscape imagery. To accommodate diverse lifestyles, over 30 layout types are incorporated within the complex’s 10,000+ square meters, including residential units, fitness facilities, community meeting rooms, and property management spaces.
The building’s clean, smooth architectural lines harmonize with the urban texture, while soft geometric elements inside create a dialogue with nature. The east-west oriented buildings are rotated 45 degrees to align with Shanghai’s residential orientation standards. This orientation, combined with careful sunlight envelope adjustments and self-shadowing avoidance, defines a precise building contour that addresses site challenges and highlights superior river views, enhanced by natural sunlight and meticulous craftsmanship.
Breaking away from traditional residential models, the design team envisioned an innovative housing concept that transcends mere spatial function and constraints. They adopted an organic architectural form inspired by natural canyons and flowing water, achieved through layered setbacks that mimic the “mountains and waters” aesthetic.
This design creates a multidimensional urban terrace resembling terraced fields within the cityscape, shaping a distinctive skyline that complements the Huangpu River’s scenery. The building’s wave-like upward cascade and inward retreat form ecological living spaces, including vertically stacked, arc-shaped outdoor viewing platforms that serve as private terraces. Each terrace is angled to maximize panoramic views, connecting facade transitions, balconies, roof gardens, and green spaces into a cohesive whole.
The facade’s gentle landscape echoes the urban interface, with stepped-back sections reminiscent of “blank spaces” in traditional Chinese landscape paintings, inviting contemplation and enhancing architectural unity.
Creating tailored community living spaces within irregular, layered setbacks posed additional challenges, including coordinating mechanical, electrical, and structural systems across vertical and horizontal dimensions. The total residential area spans 13,417 square meters, comprising up to 106 units in over 30 distinct layouts.
Unlike conventional residential projects, Jiahua E18’s floor plans are highly complex and unique, with numerous small and medium-sized as well as special layouts. Every unit benefits from meticulous customization, offering diverse, flexible, and adaptable living spaces enhanced by terraces to suit urban lifestyles.
The west facade, facing the river and offering prime views, was rotated slightly southward to create a staggered, folded facade. Solid walls face west, while living rooms and bedrooms face south, balancing functionality and aesthetic appeal. This folding effect, combined with horizontal ribbon elements, forms triangular balconies and sunshade grilles that reduce western sunlight heat gain while ensuring adequate lighting for east-west facing units.
The exterior uses burnt Mongolian gray granite complemented by copper-brown metal window frames and light gray hollow LOW-E glass, resulting in a calm and refined appearance. Horizontal ribbons of gray-white aluminum panels soften spatial boundaries and alleviate the massing’s visual heaviness. The natural landscape flows seamlessly to the ground level, where multi-layered understory spaces offer residents an intimate connection with greenery.
Conclusion: The Jiahua E18 project, spanning nearly a decade from concept to completion, exemplifies the architect’s role as a director—balancing conflicting site conditions, addressing community needs, and shaping a forward-looking urban housing model. Its complexity and innovative layout surpass many large-scale public projects, providing valuable insights and pioneering paradigms for China’s future diversified residential design and development.
Project Drawings
△ Axonometric Diagram
△ Axonometric Diagram
△ General Layout Plan
△ First Floor Plan
△ Standard Floor Plan
△ Plan View
△ Plan View
△ Plan View
△ Spatial Schematic Diagram
△ Elevation Drawing
△ Section Diagram
△ Functional Zoning Diagram
△ Analysis Chart
Project Information
Architects: Aedas, EID Arch, Shanghai Tianhua Architectural Design
Area: 22,883 m²
Project Year: 2023
Photographers: Chen Xi Studio, Ziran Architecture Photography
Manufacturers: Guangdong Jianmei Aluminum Profile Factory Co., Ltd., Jiangsu Xingherui Plastic Wood Technology Co., Ltd., Nippon Paint (China) Co., Ltd.
Lead Architect: Jiang Ping, FAIA
Project Director: Lu Shengyun
Mechanical & Electrical Consultant: Shanghai Tianhua Architectural Design Co., Ltd.
Structural Consultant: Shanghai Tianhua Architectural Design Co., Ltd.
Landscape Design Consultant: Wubei International Design Co., Ltd., Australia
Interior Design Consultant: Liang Zhitian Design / Yishe Design
Lighting Design Consultant: Li Ousi
Principal: Jiahua International Group Co., Ltd.
Location: Shanghai
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