Lost Horizon

2023 Architecture Design Competition for Young Architects: Pavilions As Urban Place-Maker

“From a colonnade steps descended to a garden, in which a lotus pool lay entrapped, the leaves so closely set that they gave an impression of a floor of moist green tiles….” Lost Horizon by James Hilton. It portrays that the protagonist gets into Shangri-La as a perfect scene, and which is resemble to the scenery of Taipa Houses nowadays. 

Under the development of Cotai, it caused the mangrove forest. In the memories of local residents, the mangrove forest is one of the important features in the Taipa Houses. However, as the city skyline keeps building up, it also affects the natural (ecological) environment in the city. The design concept is based on the transformation from the mangrove forest to a lotus pool and the developing Cotai skyline —— the lost horizon. Through the pavilion to invoke the awareness and concept of nature (ecology) in the city, and emphasise the importance of nature to human —— nature is the spiritual world of human, as well as the most precious part.

The shape of the pavilion roof is inspired by the lotus pools —— five lotus leaves are getting close to each other, and it represents to the five Taipa Houses. With the organic shape of the pavilion roof, it can perfectly blend into the natural environment and emphasize landscape of the site. The design concept is revealing the significance of the site but not the pavilion itself.