Twelve sculptural pavilions line the lakefront of Nanjing’s Yangshan Park, combining art, fashion, and leisure in a social retail destination.
Sculptural Pavilions along the Lake Form a Walkable Cultural Retail Destination
CLOU architects reveal the concept design for Yangshan Cultural Street, a 36,800-square-metre lakefront retail and cultural complex in Nanjing’s Xianlin district. Commissioned by Deji, the project reimagines the waterfront as a vibrant cultural and leisure destination for a diverse audience of students, art enthusiasts, residents and tourists. Located by Yangshan Park and opposite the Yangshan Art Centre, the project features twelve distinct pavilion structures, conceived as architectural sculptures housing fashion, food, art, and recreation. Public walkways and floating piers activate the water’s edge, while open-air cinemas, sports, and art installations blur the boundary between city and landscape.
A Fast-Growing Urban Destination
Located in the eastern district of Xianlin, one of the fastest growing urban areas in Nanjing, the project sits adjacent to Yangshan Park Station and overlooks Yangshan Lake. With an influx of young residents, university campuses, and the nearby Deji Yangshan Art Centre, the area has emerged as a key hub for education, technology, art, and upscale living. CLOU architects’ design seeks to enhance this energy through a multi-functional leisure destination that links culture, commerce and community.
Twelve Pavilions, One Spatial Composition
Instead of a conventional retail block, the project is structured as a series of twelve unique pavilions, each with its own geometry and identity. These volumes create an architectural ensemble that activates the waterfront in a rhythmic spatial composition. Though formally distinct, the pavilions share a material palette of brick, washed pebble stone, and concrete, and are unified under a translucent canopy system made of ETFE. Together, they form a looped circulation network, eliminating dead ends and inviting continuous exploration.
Blurring Water and City
A defining feature of the project is its waterfront axis. Floating walkways, platforms, and terraces extend over the lake, creating spaces for walking, viewing, or informal gathering. The integration of the buildings with the water is further reinforced by programming such as a waterfront cinema, F&B terraces, gardens and recreational piers. The edge between city and landscape is deliberately softened, encouraging outdoor leisure and social interaction in all directions.
Retail as Cultural Gallery
Targeting students, tourists and local residents alike, the retail mix is curated to go beyond commerce. Boutiques, art-led pop-ups, fashion shows, and dining experiences are staged within and around the pavilion structures. In between, generous public spaces provide opportunities for programming, including temporary exhibitions, outdoor events and seasonal festivities. In this way, Yangshan Cultural Street acts as a gallery for contemporary lifestyle and community engagement.
A Place for Art and Nature
The design extends its cultural ambition to the landscape. Trees, grassy areas, water features, and art installations are carefully embedded within the site, creating varied zones for family activities, quiet rest, or dynamic sports. A central green courtyard beneath a circular ETFE canopy acts as a hub, connecting upper and lower levels with a continuous ramp and green slope, inviting fluid movement across the site.
