Conceived as a dragon in motion, the arts and entertainment complex acts as a to Luxe Lakes – a new town for over 100,000 residents on the outskirts of Chengdu, in northern Sichuan.
Emerging from the water, the structure embraces its site in a carefully choreographed asymmetry. It folds into the sculpted hillside and arcs downwards to meet the lake, where a Performance Hall opens directly to the lake and a sheer red sandstone wall. Rooted in Chinese cultural memory, the regional landscape, and the site’s agricultural past, the building gathers art, theatre, and dining within a singular, geometrically faceted form.
An accessible green roof becomes a sloped park, guiding visitors along planted terraces through the choreographed landscape to the building’s many entries. Some arrive by water taxi, disembarking at docks that ascend through a terraced red-granite amphitheater.
Materiality deepens the connection to Sichuan’s cosmology. Red bush-hammered concrete and granite echo the region’s rich soil, and the low sandstone walls tracing the Fuhe River. Red – a symbol of luck, joy, and prosperity – envelops the structure, while cast bronze cladding on the century tower suggests historical residence and a sense of permanence. Polished stainless-steel soffits and details catch shifting light, signaling the city’s turn toward modernity and technology.
At night, the red glass in the multi-story tower library cafe becomes a glowing beacon, inviting visitors across the water and into the new city.
