Meixi Urban Helix

Meixi Urban Helix

Changsha / China

Architects: KSP Engel

Above Lake Meixi in Changsha, China, rises the Urban Helix, uniting the two worlds of nature and man-made structure. It is a glowing, spiral public space with extraordinary 360-degree views of the water, the plaza below, and the surrounding city. The ramp flows seamlessly into a lower observation deck, tracing the shore’s perimeter, and continues over the plaza as a greenery-lined bridge.

During the day, sunlight floods the Helix, but with nightfall the lighting design illuminates the structure, sculpting its winding form into the darkness above a vast public space. The design creates one continuous ribbon of light across the Helix surfaces: an eye-catching presence whose reflection in the surrounding water creates an infinity effect.