Olympia 66 is a retail building in the Xigang District of Dalian, China, designed by Aedas, which began construction in 2011. It is situated on Wusi Road, one of Dalian’s key thoroughfares for commerce. The project’s 221,900 square meters of retail, dining and entertainment area were finished in 2015. As a landmark in the Chinese city of Dalian, it serves as an example of inventive design. The greatest shopping, lifestyle, and recreation complex in Dalian is provided by this 7-story shopping mall, which achieves the delicate balance between intricate form and function.
The Chinese twin carp emblem, a representation of richness and riches in Chinese culture that is frequently used in Chinese New Year paintings, served as the design inspiration for Olympia 66.It defines an iconic city attraction and makes a modern statement with an oriental undertone.
A dynamic form was inspired by the interaction of two swimming carp and permits a loop circulation running through a continuous chain of the retail, atrium, and event spaces to the sky-plaza and central roof garden, creating a stimulating and varied lifestyle experience. The primary façade is made up of hexagonal modules with different lighting effects that mimic the reflecting carp scales.
Internal curving arcs resemble dancing carp, with the expression of a series of basic shells and the tail flowing over the curving center spine. The roof shells are layered to produce clerestory glazing, which allows direct and reflected light to enter the two atria. The largely solid insulated roof minimizes heat loss in the winter and solar gain in the summer, resulting in a straightforward environmental solution that is climate-responsive to northern China. The project has received a LEED Gold certification.
Through multiple entrances, the building shape improves urban connectivity and integration. The continuous shop frontage at a street level not only provides great visibility for retail but also makes the building completely permeable at ground level. The main entrances are clearly marked and open into spacious event rooms, providing a place to halt before joining the circulation maelstrom.
The massive floor surface is split up into open event spaces and shop areas, with a central spine connecting the two vast atria on either side and the corner entrances diagonally. The shopping path is lined with leisure activities and event venues, giving customers the chance to relax in a cafe or view a display. Around the structure, landscaped terraces add to the tranquility of the shopping experience. To provide tourists with the quickest pathways inside the building, integrated digital signage has been installed.
Benoy was hired as the project’s interior designer for the retail development and worked with Hang Lung Properties to complete it. One of Northeast China’s biggest business complexes, Olympia 66 is located in Dalian’s Central Business District. It has created a high-end shopping and lifestyle attraction for the area by bringing together worldwide fashion labels, food and leisure options, and more than 400 stores.
The retail podium, which covers seven stories and roughly 222,000 square meters, has three basement levels for parking and service docks. The design of Benoy’s interior was inspired by the roof’s shape and its allusion to the “Twin carp” symbol. Reinforcing the exterior’s geometry is the mall’s primary retail spine, which connects the two enormous atria on either side. “In our interior design, we have praised the building’s architectural form. We needed to create a design language that could translate the architecture’s concept into reality within the development, according to Simon Wong, Director at Benoy.
The retail complex is quite open to visitors because of its many entrances and efforts to improve communication and integration with the urban environment. Benoy’s Team supported this format by introducing a circulation design that enables guests to move freely throughout the construction, connecting the numerous entry points with the shop arcades, interior public spaces, event spaces, and leisure options.
The indoor plaza that is located atop the primary retail selection also reflects the development’s vast magnitude. Along the length of the development, the space unifies the plan. The area is illuminated by natural light coming through a beautiful crystalline skylight. View Lines from the various levels generate eye-catching indoor panoramas and make it simple for guests to move throughout the complex.
The grand staircase, located at ground level in one of the indoor plazas, is one of the mall’s most renowned interior elements. The hallway adds a further level of elegance to the design thanks to its marble railings, steps, and floor tiers. An animated feature ceiling that rises over the stairs further improves the room. The location provides a venue for promotional and neighborhood events, bringing a dynamic schedule of events to the mall. Benoy’s Interior Design, which brings a chic and classic icon to Dalian, also has delicate detailing and a muted color scheme, which highlights the shape of the building and the stores inside.
This seven-story flamboyant marvel has received a double win and was awarded both Gold and Sustainable Design awards for Design and Development – New Developments amid keen competition at the 2017 International Council of Shopping Center (ICSC) Asia Pacific Shopping Center Awards.
