SHIMAO CHANGQING KUANHOULI

Shimao Changqing Kuanhouli is located in Changqing District, Jinan. The significant location is in the middle part of main axis, connecting Changqing government and Wenchang Mountain Park. Changqing Kuanhouli covers 25,000 square meters of commercial streets and 22,000 square meters of apartments, with the mall located to the south as the first phase of the project. The commercial block is presented in ancient style, inheriting the charm and temperament of the traditional streets, alleys and courtyards in Qilu area, performing a distinct echo with the modern shopping center. The shopping center represents the innovative frontier of urban development, while Changqing Kuanhouli continues image of traditional streets and commercial culture in Jinan.

In terms of spatial organization, active relations are formed between streets, alleys and courtyards based on dynamic figure-ground. Walking through it, people can feel multiple layers of courtyards and corridors, as if traveling through time. The scene of flowing water, tea, music, wine, spring are showcased, while each brick, board and horse-head wall outlines the memory of "ancient charm" in people's minds. The tea garden and stage located in the central area are the climax of the whole circulation, which can provide places for people to rest and gather, sing opera and listen to music, and perform roadshows.

For the façade, the building fully extracts the spirit of Oriental aesthetics, namely, “observe the posture from a distance, the charm from the middle, the shape from close up, and the essence from an onlooker”. Its facade design, while maintaining and respecting the characteristics of the ancient style, perfectly integrates essential elements such as signboard, shop window, advertising space, and AC required by modern commerce, which can be described as the translation from the ancient into the modern.

"Architecture is a type of expression, a type of inheritance, and ultimately a type of experience." Experience is feeling and appreciation, as a kind of enjoyment for human beings on the spiritual level. Each building in Changqing Kuanhouli is trying to reproduce a once-prosperous scene for modern civilization.