XishuangbanNa Residence: Awesome or Awful?

We have some very mixed feelings about this strange looking design presented by Tokamarch Architects.

The tower is called XishuangbanNa Residence and it is proposed for a city in China called JingHong. XishuangbanNa Residence would stand 16 storeys, not including the tall bamboo chutes jutting out the top. It resembles a piece of a building, and as a whole, that building would have looked like a huge bamboo egg. Actually, what it really looks like is a giant single bamboo chute growing, but has been sliced open, exposing the colony living within - the design just got slightly better.

The idea behind XishuangbanNa Residence is that it creates a harmonious connection between the residents and the natural environment, and is completely constructed using local materials.

This is why we have mixed feelings: We love the concept of using local materials and creating more outdoor space in a residential tower - look at all those pools and garden spaces - but this just looks incomplete. It’s like a cross section of a bigger, better tower. Maybe we’re just too used to our solid looking, rectangular towers in Toronto.

The use of greenery is interesting. Bamboo and other plants are the only thing separating the units from each other on the exterior of the building. Also, the abundance of greenery would do a great job absorbing the sounds of traffic from the nearby street.

Another thing that we like about the design, but has nothing to do with the appearance, is its name - XishuangbanNa Residence - cool. Apparently XiShuangBanNa translates to “ideal and magical land.” Also, JingHong translates to “the City of Dawn.” Therefore, XiShuangBanNa in JingHong translates to “ideal and magical land in the City of Dawn.” Pretty epic. So, we propose that the design is altered and the name stays!

Is anyone else staring at this design and confused by what they feel? Don’t worry, you’re not alone.