Text description provided by the architects
Jianye Eighteen Cities Phase Seven, "Tianjing," in Shangqiu, is a residential landscape designed by Shenzhen Bolis Landscape Planning and Design for Central Plains Jianye's Shangqiu city company. The project is framed as an urban landscape retreat, organised through the infiltration of forest and the refinement of water, drawing on Shangqiu's identity as an ecological garden city and inserting those regional impressions into a modern residential setting. Water is led into the garden and residents are sheltered by trees, so that the dialogue between people and space becomes abstract and delicate and an authentic ideal of home life can begin. The entry sequence is called "Realm of Flowing Cascade": the main gatehouse emphasises the collision of colour and texture, with dark grey marble layered and staggered in ordered repetition, producing a dense-and-sparse dialogue of light and shadow. A cascading waterfall pours from the spirit banner, giving the entrance a broad, deep and enduring character that expresses the bearing of a luxury residence, and the regularity of the marble invites visitors to step closer. The second episode is "Gallery of Light and Shadow": at the turning of the view, mountainous natural air is introduced through transparent stone tile, and the interior of the corridor pairs soft star-like lighting with sculpted pines to produce a quiet, profound, natural comfort. The third episode is "Floating Isle by the Moon": a courtyard that, in the manner of a square pond mirroring sky and clouds, expresses a rational, refined order through sensory imagery. Water gleams and moves, bridges cross, grasses sing, and visitors feel as though they are walking through a landscape painting, with views changing at every step and an elegant, cultured tone. The water reflects the sky, wind pushes the moon against the hills, light ripples, and the scene invites a quiet cup of tea. The project is located in Shangqiu, Henan.
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