The design of the mall will not only meet strict building height guidelines, but also remain in sympathy with the city’s historical icon and express its aspirations for the future. Shenyang’s relatively cold average temperatures would also be a factor in the design.
     The structure’s rear facade is a stripped-down interpretation of traditional Chinese architecture, with colonnades, monolithic forms and natural brown brick surfaces creating a sympathetic, balanced response to the nearby Palace. These materials and design cues gradually bleed toward the front of the structure, eventually giving way to a concave front facade clad in sparkling perforated-and-textured bronze. Centrepiece of the composition is a trio of angled lollipop canopies over the mall’s main entranceway. Each is held aloft by a trio of slender, inclined columns, and boasts a metal mesh underside onto which images can be projected.

     As a practical measure to keep Shenyang’s sometimes harsh climate at bay, exterior glazing was kept to a relative minimum. Inside, the mall’s 120,000-sq m GFA is distributed among four above-ground storeys and three basement levels. An expansive rooftop garden area variously serves as a park, sports venue and a skating rink according to need and season.
     The architect is Woods Bagot Asia. The project is set for completion in late 2009.