Project Name: Wave Cube (Three-Body Future Academy) 

Location: Fengxian District, Shanghai, China 

Design Team: Scenic Architecture Office (SAO) 

Total Floor Area: 29700 m²

Completion: 2025

Photography: Shengliang Su, Guowei Liu

Design Features: Scenic Architecture Office has completed Wave Cube, a landmark multi-purpose cultural facility located in the Fengxian New City of Shanghai. Spanning 29,700 square metres on a peninsula along the eastern shore of Jin Hai Lake, the project synthesises the immersive exhibition of the "Three-Body" sci-fi narrative, public education, and community social spaces into a cohesive architectural landscape that serves as a vibrant gateway for contemporary urban culture.

The conceptual foundation of the project derives from an advanced exploration of "Free Cells." The architecture is defined by three vertically superimposed undulating layers: the lower "Green Hills" consist of eight concrete shells merged with the earth; the central "Vaulted Void" creates a continuous, open semi-outdoor realm that allows the lakeside promenade to flow directly beneath the structure; and the upper "Wave Pavilion" serves as a massive, suspended indoor park. This vertical stratification achieves a rare unity between complex programmatic logic and a poetic, landscape-driven experience.

The realization of this spatial vision was made possible through rigorous structural innovation. Collaborating closely with structural consultants, the design team developed a composite system mediating between a vaulted shell and a folded plane. By pushing the compressive and tensile capacities of prestressed concrete to their limits, the project achieved sweeping 54-metre spans and dramatic 27-metre cantilevers. Internally, the design responds to sci-fi themes through undulating surfaces that evoke an immersive sense of cosmic movement. The project demonstrates with conviction that tectonic precision and narrative spatial atmosphere are mutually reinforcing values.

Design Team: Scenic Architecture Office (SAO) was established in 2004 by principal architect Zhu Xiaofeng, and is headquartered in Shanghai. Born in 1971, Zhu completed his graduate studies at Harvard University and obtained his PhD from Tongji University. He currently serves as a Professor at the University of Hong Kong and is a chartered member of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The practice has long been committed to employing the ontological language of architecture to forge balanced relationships among humans, nature, and technology.

The office has developed a diverse portfolio spanning educational facilities, cultural centres, commercial developments, and urban regeneration projects across China. This typological breadth reflects the practice's core methodology of contextual responsiveness and geometric rigor, applied consistently regardless of scale. The office deliberately maintains a selective project volume to ensure that each commission receives the intensive involvement and undivided attention of the principal architect from conceptual design through to technical delivery.

SAO holds a distinguished position within the international architectural discourse, with its works featured in seminal publications such as Kenneth Frampton’s Modern Architecture: A Critical History and The Phaidon Atlas of 21st Century World Architecture. Having received numerous accolades including international design awards, the practice continues to explore the "Rebirth of Form-type" to address evolving urban challenges. Currently, the team is engaged in a wide range of new-build commissions, further affirming its standing as a leading force in contemporary Chinese architecture.