China’s Mad Architects has unveiled its design of the "Cloud Centre" in the port city of Qinhuangdao in northeast China.
The building will be a multipurpose public space for the Aranya, a seaside arts and culture community, complete with conference room, theatre, exhibition space.
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It is formed from a series of structural overhangs, the largest reaching 30m in length, creating the effect of a solid white mass that appears to float over a glazed ground floor. The cloud is balanced and suspended from the building’s central core, which provides support for the entire structure.
A low circular wall will surround the building’s exterior, which is echoed by a series of white rocks and undulating greenery within the garden. A pool, located at the building’s entrance, is there to "blur the boundaries between architecture and nature, and interior and exterior", according to Mad.
![](https://www.globalconstructionreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/mad3_14.jpg)
The design is reminiscent of Mad’s Shenzhen Bay Culture Park, a 51,000 sq m development combining green space with a Creative Design Hall, exhibition pavilions, a theatre and a museum.
Construction on the Cloud Centre has begun and it is due to open in 2022.
Images courtesy of Mad Architects