Wholesale Conversion of Industrial Building @ Wong Chuk Hang into GENESIS

Under the initiatives of Hong Kong Development Bureau to facilitate wholesale conversion of industrial buildings, the project aims to revitalize abandoned industrial building into a contemporary vertical artist village at Hong Kong Island South. Consisting of 22 floors, the project is anticipated to be completed by June 2014, marking a new chapter of adaptive re-use in architecture in Hong Kong.

With the support from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council, the 12th Floor of the GENESIS is dedicated to offer low rent studios to artists and designers to promote local art and culture development.

The Skin Architecture
While one of the client’s expectations is to include elements of “Italian” and “Ferrari” into the building, the unique Ferrari yellow of the skin architecture and the twists on the elevation are reminiscent of the outstanding speed of the Italian sports car Ferrari. The identical Ferrari yellow also makes the newly furnished architecture prominent and which adds vitality to the surrounding area.

The Vertical Twist
The introduction of the Vertical Twisted Architectural Fins is an attempt to 'Dismantle" and to "Disorder" the monotonous elevation treatment of the original skin, whilst the Twists are the orthodox response to the Ascending Flyover right in the front of the site. The Vertical Twisted Architectural Fins also perform as the Vertical Lighting Devices for the architecture.

Such 'Verticality" reveals the Vertical Forces of the Ancient Gothic Church, but in a much more Contemporary Manipulations.

The Display Window in the Air
The Superimposition created by the "Set-Back" of introducing Balconies and Double Volume Display Windows are injected on the External Skins, the Balconies' Zones are recreated to serve the New Functions, whilst the manifestation of the "Double Volume Display Windows" are purposely set at an angle to coincide the gradient of the ascending flyover right in the front, recreating a new metaphor of "Window-Shopping in the Air" for the drivers and passengers.

All these Display Windows in the Air will be showcasing the Artworks of the Artists in the air.

The GENESIS is to become a hub for young designers and artists, which follows plenty of worldwide precedents in bringing exciting cultural and commercial life to abandoned buildings formerly derelict, abandoned or simply underutilized. The project presents an architectural manifestation of design innovation, flexibility and adaptability.