Zhuhai Planning Science and Technology Innovation Center / nsaaa + Zhuhai Institute of Urban Planning & Design

In architectural discourse, regionalism is no longer a novel concept. For small-scale projects, increasing numbers of architects strive to interpret locality. Yet for large urban developments, especially high-rises, regional identity often seems inherently suppressed. Most designs still place their focus on being formally innovative with the aid of evolving curtain wall technologies. Such form-driven approaches strip architecture of authenticity, allowing buildings to be placed anywhere without context. The highest objective of being iconic statements, mask hollow design logic and capital-driven agendas. This rigid separation of "bones" and "skin" subtly regresses modernism into classical formalism, reducing architecture to ornamented objects with costly exteriors—disconnected from their sites and internal functions.