Pushing the boundaries of the retail environment — LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE AOTEAROA

The Ring, ASPECT Studios’ new community-oriented retail destination in the heart of Chongqing, China, “pushes the boundaries of the traditional retail environment, which has been turned on its head in recent years by online shopping culture and the pandemic.”

With accessible public open space, a range of facilities and indoor and outdoor experiences, the first of Hongkong Land’s new retail destinations, “shifts the emphasis from commercial exchange to social exchange and connection to nature.”

The Ring “reinvents the traditional principle of retail, addressing critical urban challenges and mapping out the future of this location.” Image credit - Wenjie Wang, xf photography.

The Ring sits at the centre of a growing residential area, therefore offering tens of thousands of people a nearby community space to connect with nature. It stitches a series of public spaces to a commercial development, restoring the city’s relationship with the natural environment.

An urban arrival park uses undulations reminiscent of a sea current. Locally sourced materials reflect oceanic characteristics, with a “school of manta rays” formed by groupings of shaded seating planters, groupings of facilities, spaces and lookouts.

The Ring pushes the traditional boundaries of the retail environment. Image credit - Wenjie Wang, xf photography.

The tonal transitions of terraces, steps and level changes both allow the mitigation of significant level changes on site, and give the impression of light fading into the depths of the ocean. They also create usable and accessible community spaces ranging from art, community gathering, shaded relaxation and water-play uses.

Visitors travel from the urban park to a community plaza- an event and gathering space with terraced seating, and framed by lookouts and sculptural art works. An interactive sculpture imitates the form of a seashell, allowing users to travel through a cave-like space to a lower level and view a 20-metre high fountain.

The Ring sits at the centre of a growing residential area. Image credit - Wenjie Wang, xf photography.

The northern edge of the plaza features a lookout floating from the terrace, allowing visitors to explore the site’s planting in the shade of the trees.

ASPECT Studios’ design reflects the connection between ocean and land, and the open-air dining street is inspired by a forest valley. Dense planting displays, misting systems and a valley feature cool the environment and offer, “a unique setting for visitors to enjoy the many cafes and restaurants set among the planting, creating a place to relax, connect and explore.”

Image credit - Wenjie Wang, xf photography.

Sky Gardens at the highest point of the development are a peaceful retreat that let visitors explore drifts of flowering and seasonal plants. These act as a resource for pollinating insects and wildlife, with most of the plants across The Ring’s 50,000 square-metres being local species, and therefore also requiring less maintenance and water.

Stephen Buckle, ASPECT Studios’ Shanghai studio director, says “The Ring reinvents the traditional principle of retail, addressing critical urban challenges and mapping out the future of this location. By focusing on people and community and providing meaningful publicly accessible open space over short-term gain and commercial dominance, not only have we provided the much- needed public realm facilities, we have also created an inspirational and unique destination for people of the city to explore.”