Description

Marina One consists of 4 towers in a cruciform layout, each tower separated on the four axes, with a central plaza hollowed out from the building form. The taller two towers are for offices, and the lower 2 towers are residential. Beneath the Level One plate, there are car parks and shopping zones, with underground links to neighbouring buildings and transport connections. The design of the central ‘green heart’ and the open roof-garden spaces of levels 2,3 and 4, responds to the sculptural louvres and façades, blending the building with the terraced roof gardens, spiralling and ascending skywards. The landscape rises to the 15th level, and up to the roof crown of the office towers. The penthouses on the residential towers each have a garden terrace. completing this dramatic expression of steel, glass, light, and living plants.

The central garden at level one draws the visitor in from the many entry points, which all converge on the shallow pool that curves through the space, criss-crossed with 2 level bridges. Cascading softly down into the pools from the upper louvres are the 2 and 3 storey high sparkling waterfalls. The intent is to foster the spirit of biophilia, a sense of closeness to nature despite the manmade location, helping people to sense the peacefulness of a new type of urban tropical rainforest.

At each level, all visible from each other’s deck, there is lush and diverse greenery, multi-textured undergrowth, tall canopy trees, then trailing plants and creepers, all rising and cascading from the woodland base to the more open and breezy tiers at the very top. The concept intent guiding the landscape design was the idea of environmental strata; forest at the base, green terraces upwards to cloud forest. Considering these different micro-climatic conditions at each ‘altitude’ became a kind of lowland forest-to-montane profile, which determined the landscape character, plant forms, habit and species selection.

Landscape Architect

ICN Design International