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The Grand Gateway at Xu Ja Hui
Shanghai, China

Lighting this exciting new development at the busiest intersection in downtown Shanghai provided a welcome challenge for the design team.  Encompassing an entire city block (including retail, residential, office and entertainment facilities), the project required a cohesive lighting design based on a strong conceptual foundation.  The cumulative impact of lighting, architecture and landscape provides a compelling story to both attract and accompany patrons through the multi-faceted development.  The conceptual work was represented by seven descriptive storyboards created as a result of collaborative work sessions between the lighting, architectural and landscape design teams.

The story begins from a distance with a glimpse of the sparkling office and residential towers.  You are then greeted with a welcoming glow at street level that evolves into playful and kinetic lighting events within the plaza and gateway rotunda.  These themes are carried throughout the project and are depicted here with a combination of sketches, renderings, photographs and verbal narratives.  The storyboards along with preliminary technical descriptions, power requirements and budgets were included in a schematic design booklet, providing a conceptual reference to the owner and design team and ensuring consistency for the duration of the project.