"The more Hong Kong adapts, the more it becomes itself. It is a city capable of absorbing any influences, without compromising its own essential culture." -*Rem Koolhaas.

With a population of over 7 million people packed into an area of 426 square miles, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated places in the world. As with other places where development cannot expand horizontally, apartment buildings tend to get taller and taller in order to provide living space for all the inhabitants.

The site: HONG KONG. 

The problem: Lack of soil.

The solution: Live up.

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Facing the reality of millions of thousands of citizens, the solution seems clear, the problem is the way it's done: lots of concrete repetitive towers that have lead to a drowner anonymity. The space of the city creates neither identity, nor relations, only solitude and similitude. Alone, but one of many.

What if we provide people a place where they can express themselves?

What if we conceive the void as a tabula rasa, somewhere where you could go, act freely and occupy it?

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The aim: A tower of people.

The reference: Jungle’s nine-layer system

(Hong Kong as an urban jungle, and bringing the concept further, we apply the layering to the city itself.)

The solution: A dynamic sky village that strengthens individuality, personality and freedom.

A new system is created where rooms, functions, locations and space become a choice of the inhabitant itself. A village that grows vertically and is tranformed every minute by the movement of the cells themselves that change not only its overview from the outside, but also the relations and functions between each unit. The appearance changes over time, containing the potential for participation. Thus, the prime motivation of the space is caused by people and their activities.

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The physical solution is based on high towers that contain multiple diverse units. The acces to each unit is solved with cilindrical elevators that run inside the core of each tower transporting people not only from the ground floor to a certain unit but also from one unit to another. There are different types of units depending on the functions they accomodate.

The private possession of the units will be possible only during a preestablished period of time.

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We have to consider three different spaces or spatial degrees within the units: the one inside -holding the main activity that could be housing, office, equipment... with a more private character-, the roof of the unit -occupied not only by the users of that certain unit but also by the users of the other units, its the public space of the "village", going from one another is only possible in certain occasions when the units are in contiguous positions and thus allow the way from one to another-, and the relation between the units depending on their position -which allows the way through previously mentioned or other options such as providing intimacy, a surface for projections...

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The design anticipates change and growth.

City is movement, adaptability... go find your place.

Take it, Transform it, Adapt it!