See if you can find other designers and architects who have explored the idea of
Boundary in spatial design.
Norman Foster and Thomas Heatherwick. Project: Bund Finance Centre in Shanghai, completed in 2017
The creators of Bund Finance Centre have clearly played with the idea of boundaries in architecture. They created a façade of layered, brass coloured pipes that move in different directions. Behind the curtain is the balcony, which has a moving boundary wall. It must be mesmerising being there, surrounded by this moving, semi open feature. Below is a link to a youtube video, showing timelapse of the Bund Finance Centre in Shanghai.
Leeza Soho Skyscraper in Beijing completed in 2019, by Zaha Hadid Architects completed in 2019
This building pushes the idea of boundaries with the worlds tallest atrium (according to Lizzie Crook, Dezeen at Zaha Hadid Architects completes Leeza SOHO tower with world’s tallest atrium (dezeen.com))
The tower is just over 194m high and the atrium runs through the entire height. The ceiling boundary was literally taken to a new level. The atrium space is fully glazed on its spiralling, swaying sides, making it appear as if it is connecting two separate skyscrapers. The floors inside have different depths and varying shapes, giving the twisting interior appearance of a flow. In this fine example we can see how the idea of internal and external boundaries were explored and pushed to the limits, with massive glass windows and internal boundaries between the atrium and the internal walls and balconies facing it. The interior looks like a skyscraper within a skyscraper, or a skyscraper that split.
Analemma Tower, Conceptual Design by Clouds Architecture Office.
‘Analemma Tower is a proposal for the world’s tallest building ever. Harnessing the power of planetary design thinking, it taps into the desire for extreme height, seclusion and constant mobility.’ (Clouds Architecture Office, 2021, https://cloudsao.com/ANALEMMA-TOWER)
Proposal, if or when realised will be the tallest building ever with its peak at 32000m above sea level (this is longer than my route to work and back!) The boundary of laws of physics seems to be challenged here. The designers had to consider physics, and think of extreme pressure and temperature outside, for example they considered window designs depending on the level and subsequent atmospheric conditions.
Clouds Architecture seriously defied boundaries with this idea. Ground level line is a crucial part of an elevation or section drawing. Despite that, Analemma Tower is supposed to be suspended off an asteroid, well above ground. Also, location of a skyscraper is normally fixed to one place. Analemma would be following a figure eight trajectory, crossing northern and southern hemispheres, over the same pattern every 24 hours. Perhaps this is the future of building, and the only way to get there is defy boundaries. The tower is set to be self-sufficient, harvesting water from rain and recycling it as much as possible, energy will be provided via solar panels. This is important not only because of sustainability, but also practicality – how else can we deliver water and energy (and I suppose huge amounts of it) to a suspended, moving building? Gravity would be an important aspect of the project planning; it would surely be a very heavy object… Can the ropes supporting it be strong enough? How will people get on and off the tower if it would be in constant motion? The route of the tower would make it slow down on the curved edges, with slowest speed to be above Manhattan in New York. Perhaps platforms moving at exact same speed as the tower would allow ‘passengers’ (residents?) on and off. The varying speed against earth surface is not specified in the project description. How will this building react to extreme weather? Would it sway in strong winds? This is a really exciting proposal, I am curious to see if it will be realised.
List of illustratuions:
Fig. 1 Ghinitoiu, L (2017) Bund Finance Centre Façade. [Photograph] At: https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2017/06/bund-finance-centre-norman-foster-heatherwick-laurian-ghinitoiu-shanghai-photography_dezeen_1704_col_10-852×568.jpg (Accessed 05/01/2022)
Fig. 2 Ghinitoiu, L (2017) Bund Finance Centre Balcony. [Photograph] At: https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2017/06/bund-finance-centre-norman-foster-heatherwick-laurian-ghinitoiu-shanghai-photography_dezeen_1704_col_18-852×568.jpg (Accessed 05/01/2022)
Fig. 3 Hufton and Crow (2019) Leeza Soho Skyscraper Interior. [Photograph] At: https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2019/11/leeza-soho-tower-zaha-hadid-architecture-office-china-beijing_dezeen_2364_col_7-852×900.jpg (Accessed 05/01/2022)
Fig. 4 At: Hufton and Crow (2019) Leeza Soho Skyscraper Exterior. [Photograph] At: https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2019/11/leeza-soho-tower-zaha-hadid-architecture-office-china-beijing_dezeen_2364_col_5-852×751.jpg (Accessed 05/01/2022)
Fig. 5 Clouds Architecture Office (2017) Analemma Tower Above Manhattan. [Visual] At: https://media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com/image/upload/t_fit-1240w,f_auto,q_auto:best/newscms/2017_13/1947031/analemma-05_cloudsao.jpg (Accessed 06/01/2022)
Fig. 6 Clouds Architecture Office (2017) Analemma Tower, view from street level. [Visual] At: https://freight.cargo.site/w/2000/i/364df2ee4116008871fc33999b04444ddcb3c0e14744ab780ad334af6c5aa818/160816_PU_UP-btwn-two-tower_collage.jpg (Accessed 06/01/2022)
Fig. 7 Clouds Architecture Office (2017) Analemma Tower, Elevation. [Technical Drawing] At: https://freight.cargo.site/w/2000/i/e695a15564be959568585e78b6093ba14d60d83ae1488f951586d3979fbf7e5c/Analemma-ATMOS-diagram-01.jpg (Accessed 06/01/2022)
References:
Clouds Architecture Office (2021) Analemma Tower. At: https://cloudsao.com/ANALEMMA-TOWER (Accessed 06/01/2022)
Crook, L (2019) Zaha Hadid Architects completes Leeza Soho skyscraper with world’s tallest atrium. At: Zaha Hadid Architects completes Leeza SOHO tower with world’s tallest atrium (dezeen.com) (Accessed 05/01/2022)
Frearson, A (2017) Foster and Heatherwick complete Shanghai theatre with curtain-like façade. At: Foster and Heatherwick build Shanghai arts centre with curtain-like facade (dezeen.com) (Accessed 05/01/2022)
Freeman, D (2017) Firm floats plan to hang colossal skyscraper from an asteroid. At: https://www.nbcnews.com/mach/mach/firm-floats-plan-hang-colossal-skyscraper-asteroid-ncna739601 (Accessed 06/01/2022)
Aggie's interior design journey 
