iCity is set to become a comprehensive cultural and creative hub in the Hengqin New Area, supporting one of the seven focus industries of Hengqin and bringing natural elements into a futuristic environment through holistic design.

The site is higher in the north than the south, so a semi-open plan is adopted to optimise the intake of sunlight and ventilation. In response to Hengqin’s urban planning objectives, 30% of iCity was reserved for spirit-lifting green spaces, distributed at different levels throughout the shopping mall, office space and open areas for building users to relax and get close to nature.

The project responds to the area’s urban planning objectives of “being an eco-friendly island city abundant in mountains and rivers”, combining the design concepts of low carbon, ecology, intelligence, and culture. It’s designed to be a smart, creative, cultural destination and a hub of international offices for businesses in the Hengqin Free Trade Zone.

With streamlined design, high-rise towers in the project create a unique, dynamic skyline, packed with details accentuating the characteristics of the city by the seaside and its humanistic atmosphere.

The lighting design strategy is to emphasize the iconic “Animation World” situated at the center of the site, which provides extensive space for cultural events, art performance and multimedia exhibits. It symbolizes the main stage of the whole development, surrounded by the high-rise towers as the backdrop.

Inspired by the tranquility of the galaxy, color-changing LED dot lights are applied to the “Animation World” to simulate the mysterious and intriguing visual effect of the Milky Way. LED dot lights are concealed and installed at the joints of the triangular aluminum panels on the building façade, using color and contrast to strengthen the polyhedral features of the architecture and minimize the visual impact on the building façade during the day. In addition, dynamic lighting gently shuttles through the multi-diagonal facade presenting the diversity of the animation world, implying that cultural creativity shines brightly in this area. Another architectural feature of the animation world is the irregular long cutouts at both ends of the building, like the windows of a spaceship sailing in the galaxy. Color-changing LED linear lights outline the shape and serve as a finishing touch to enrich the overall lighting effect.

Scattered light boxes are added to the high-rise towers at the backdrop to symbolize the stage lighting casting lights from different directions onto the animation world which is the main character to perform and shine on the stage, while linear lights on the rooftop of the towers shape the skyline, crafting iCity to become the focal of the city no matted being viewed at a distance or up close.