SOM’s Sichuan Airlines Center was presented with a 2016 AIA International Region Merit Award for Architecture at a presentation dinner in Hong Kong on December 1st. The award had first been announced at a gala dinner in Toronto on October 23rd.
The Sichuan Airlines Center tower occupies a prominent site in the city center of Chengdu and has become a symbol of the city’s urban transformation, while reflecting local textural elements. The design of the tower focuses on the creation of flexible, high-quality office spaces and thoughtful engagement with the public realm, inviting the life of the street into the site. The unique form of the tower folds open vertically, responding to the local climate, which is predominantly overcast throughout the year.