Xixi Wetland Estate

The site borders a national wetland park, a landscape shaped by people for over a thousand years where land, architecture and water are closely bound. The British design team carried this atmosphere into a new development of apartment buildings.

The buildings are surrounded by a mostly wild water garden that refers to the wetland. Against this greenery they appear as dark stone volumes, placed, like the local villages, on stone plinths standing in the water. Each plinth forms the base of a small village group, with levels, walls and balustrades creating a sequence of outdoor spaces that lead to the entrances.

Inside, the rooms feel as if they float above the water. Full-height windows bring in daylight and frame views over the garden.