‘Huangpu River’ which was launched by the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government, Party Committee and Government of Pudong New Area.
As Shanghai has stepped into a new stage of transformation and renewal, it was a huge opportunity to develop a conceptual idea that blended traditional Shanghai (Hù) with contemporary Shanghai. Our designs created quality public space enhancement, optimized ecological and environment opportunities and clustering of cultural functions.
Our concept aimed to harness and celebrate the strong sense of culture and place associated with the history of the river, whilst establishing a compelling spatial framework of scale and ‘weight’ in the urban landscape equal to taking its role in the sheer size of the Pudong East Bund 21km riverbank.
Many know that an abbreviation of Shanghai is Hù, however few know that Hù is traditional fishing gear that can be traced back centuries. The practice of inserting bamboo sticks arranged with a net to trap fish is one of the oldest fishing techniques in the world.
EPCΛD created signature ‘elements’ derived from the net weaving, the bamboo and the stone barriers used by the local fishermen in the distant past. These sculptural pieces provide key visual markers along the Huangpu River while creating commercial opportunities. Continuous striking reds and oranges of Koi fish and the oriental dragon are used as the accent colour, linking all aspects of each individual site in continuous rhythm and movement along the River’s edge.
Culturally sensitive yet striking and immediately recognisable within a truly global city such as Shanghai, we believe our design, as in Chinese folklore ‘Li Yue Long Men’, enabled Pudong East Bund to be another successful, sustainable public space, befitting to the site and enduring for generations.