{"id":9603,"date":"2026-06-18T10:40:58","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T10:40:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/angesfinanciers.org\/?p=9603"},"modified":"2026-06-19T15:12:25","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T15:12:25","slug":"zha-designs-waterfront-performance-venue-in-china-to-crescendo-and-flare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/angesfinanciers.org\/index.php\/2026\/06\/18\/zha-designs-waterfront-performance-venue-in-china-to-crescendo-and-flare\/","title":{"rendered":"ZHA designs waterfront performance venue in China to “crescendo and flare”"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Songshan<\/div>\n

A trio of swooping, interconnected volumes informed by traditional Cantonese opera costumes make up this performing arts centre<\/a>, which has been completed by UK studio ZHA<\/a> in Guangdong, China<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Perched on a waterfront site within south China’s Greater Bay Area, the Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Center contains an undulating 1,200-seat Grand Theatre alongside an exhibition hall and 400-seat multifunctional hall.<\/p>\n

\"Sweeping
ZHA has completed the Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Center in Guangdong, China<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The aluminium-clad centre was designed by ZHA<\/a>, which was recently renamed from Zaha Hadid Architects<\/a>, to act as a “civic and cultural anchor” for the larger redevelopment of the Yuehe Lake waterfront.<\/p>\n

ZHA drew on the area’s legacy as “a birthplace of Cantonese opera” for the centre’s flowing forms, which were intended to evoke the silk sleeves of traditional costumes.<\/p>\n

\"Songshan
Its flowing forms were designed to evoke the silk sleeves of traditional opera costumes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“The centre’s design incorporates multiple distinct structures that crescendo and flare, rising at its western edge to frame the main theatre and exhibition space,” the studio said.<\/p>\n

Its three volumes, which are connected by a first-floor terrace, are clad with light-grey aluminium panels chosen to minimise solar heat gain.<\/p>\n

Strips of jagged glazing break up their exteriors and are divided by prefabricated concrete panels.<\/p>\n

\"Interior
Curving walls wrap around the skylit interior<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At ground level, the Songshan Lake Exhibition and Performance Center is complemented by a waterfront promenade, gardens and a public plaza.<\/p>\n

ZHA’s use of dramatic curves extends to the spacious, skylit interior, where sweeping walls made from glass-reinforced gypsum frame the building’s staircases and walkways.<\/p>\n

Terracotta-toned walls are paired with wooden floors and ceilings throughout.<\/p>\n