Skylight Sales Center

Listeners enter a grand double-height interior space designed for architectural presentation, approximately the proportions of a generous hall rising two stories in height. Scanning from above downward, the ceiling dominates initial perception, composed of large triangular panels clad in wood with rich brown tones suggesting walnut or dark oak, warm like autumn leaves or aged leather. These triangular modules fold and angle in various directions, creating a faceted landscape overhead that resembles crystalline formations or folded origami scaled to architectural dimensions. The wood grain runs visibly across each panel, lending organic texture to the geometric precision. Dark linear seams separate each triangle, creating a network of angular lines across the entire ceiling expanse. Moving downward, the rear wall continues the warm wood treatment in vertical ribbed panels, their surface catching light that filters through from an unseen source, creating horizontal bands of golden illumination alternating with shadow. Centered against this wall, a large display screen shows an aerial view rendered in gray and white tones. Below in the middle ground, a presentation platform supports an architectural scale model of residential tower buildings, their miniature forms rising perhaps eighteen inches tall, surrounded by green landscaping suggesting parks and streets. The platform appears dark, possibly black glass or polished stone, reflecting the ceiling above. To the right, floor-to-ceiling glass panels with slender vertical frames allow natural daylight to enter, the light feeling cool and diffused like an overcast morning. Through these windows, trees with bare winter branches are visible. The floor beneath reflects like still water, its surface cool gray polished stone with subtle veining, smooth as river rock worn by centuries of flow. A curved white architectural element emerges at the far right edge, its smooth plaster surface contrasting with the angular geometries elsewhere.

This is a sales center in a community in Yiwu, China. The biggest problem the project designer faced is that the interior space is relatively deep. Also, there is no large glass curtain wall on the exterior of the building, which blocks the natural light and leads to poor indoor lighting. The design strategy is to employ skylights and introduces natural light in through the fifth facade of the building, thereby solving the problem of insufficient lighting in the interior space.