Hong Kong architect 10 Design has won an international contest to redevelop a 24 hectare site in Nanjing into a mega mixed-use development as part of an ambitious transformation of a former military airbase. The central theme was to echo the historic past of the former capital, while reflecting the future aspirations of the bustling city, home to close to 9 million people.

A&D Awards 2020 has again proven its importance to the architecture and interior design community – and a newly-introduced category also proved to be a big hit!

With the final tally completed, more than 300 projects were submitted from architectural and design practices across Greater China, with just over 50% from Hong Kong-based studios. One of the new categories – Future Developments – attracted just over 20% of the Architecture submissions. Interior design projects were again the most popular, accounting for two-thirds of entries.

Working out and clubbing are weekly staples for many young urban professionals – so why not combine the two? “When Gymming Meets Clubbing” is the design concept behind Physical 2.0, a psychedelic new workout space in Shanghai, fashioned by Hong Kong-based studio Panorama.

Imagine the Ritz Paris, the Chateau de Versailles and the Museum of Modern Art – and you’ll start to have a feel for AXA Prime Lounge. Designed by Hong Kong-based 4N Design for French insurer AXA, the lounge is both an indulgent sanctuary for AXA’s premium clients and an homage to French and European architecture, design and art.

A&D Awards 2020 is now closed for entries after a remarkably strong response from architecture and design practices and product suppliers across the Greater China region. Despite the challenges created by the pandemic, more than 300 high-calibre entries were submitted for both local and international projects, including the new categories of Future Developments and Innovation and Technology. Judging will soon be underway.

If you’ve ever been to Yakinikumafia in the colourful Tokyo district of Kabukicho, you’ll recall it’s sleek interiors and outstanding Japanese Wagyu. Now there’s a Yakinikumafia in Hong Kong and, thanks to local design studio Bean Buro, it’s lost none of its funky character.

Imagine the challenge of turning two decaying, rammed earth-wood village houses, in a remote mountainous village in China, accessible only by narrow pathways, into a luxurious hotel. That’s exactly what Hangzhou-based Line+ Studio did to create the stunning Stray Bird Art Hotel in Chenjiapu village, Songyang county.

Digital technologies have flourished during the Covid outbreak, keeping businesses going, information flowing and people connected.

How those technologies can be interwoven with human-centred design to create a better world will be one of the key questions facing society as it emerges from the pandemic. It will also be the focus of Hong Kong Design Centre’s Knowledge of Design Week from 26 to 29 August.

Innovative Hong Kong designer Stefano Tordiglione is deservedly proud of his studio’s work on Treehouse, a cool vegetarian eatery which opened in Soho last September. The design fully embraced the restaurant owner’s vision of a “plant-based, made from scratch, fast-casual” restaurant.

Lighting is a sensory experience, says LWK + PARTNERS’s Rebecca Wong. She compares it to “applying makeup on architecture” by highlighting important features of a design and using shadows to create contrast. Discover more about how this creative interior designer worked her magic on recent hotel and restaurant projects in Hong Kong and on the mainland.