The Dezeen Awards China 2025 shortlist, comprising over 100 projects across architecture, interiors, and design, has cemented its status as the definitive showcase for innovation in the region. This year’s selections highlight a thrilling fusion of global expertise—featuring work from titans like Foster + Partners and Safdie Architects—and breakthrough ideas from local studios such as Domain Architects and Atelier Xi. The dominant themes are a renewed sensitivity to nature, a commitment to community-focused sustainability, and the bold integration of cutting-edge technology. From serene coastal pavilions to the world’s first 3D-printed structure in a remote desert, the shortlisted projects illustrate a powerful architectural movement dedicated to improving daily life and challenging conventional boundaries in the built environment.
A Thrilling Convergence of Global and Local Giants
The awards shortlist serves as a testament to the sophisticated maturity of the Chinese design landscape, which now sees major international players competing directly with highly creative domestic firms. Global powerhouses are represented by projects such as Foster + Partners’ Alibaba Shanghai Campus, an entry that underscores the monumental scale and ambition defining modern commercial architecture in China. Similarly, Safdie Architects’ Habitat Qinhuangdao Phase 2 demonstrates how complex residential planning continues to evolve under international influence.
Crucially, the contest simultaneously celebrates the rise of local firms. The Architect of the Year shortlist features homegrown talent like Domain Architects and Studio Link-Arc, recognized for their distinct, context-driven approaches to spatial exploration. In interiors, firms like Linehouse and Atelier d’More dominate the competitive categories, proving that Chinese studios are setting global benchmarks for aesthetic and functional originality.
Residential Design as a Retreat to Nature
The Residential and Home Interior categories reveal a collective desire to integrate nature and tranquility into the high-pressure environment of urban living. The shortlisted houses act as sanctuaries, utilizing sophisticated design techniques to blur the line between indoor and outdoor spaces. “A House of Light” by LQS Architects in Shanghai, for example, is lauded for its expert manipulation of natural light, transforming dense urban plots into sunlit havens.
Meanwhile, projects like Chu’s Orange Manor Living Center by Suzao Architects demonstrate a move toward providing integrated, community-oriented housing solutions that respect their immediate landscapes. The trend extends into private interiors, where concepts like the House of Borrowed Scenery by Atelier Jingjing in Beijing are recognized for their poetic ability to frame exterior views, essentially importing the natural world into the domestic sphere, offering psychological respite from city stress.
Public Architecture and the Cultural Catalyst
This year’s public and cultural architecture shortlists reflect the growing national investment in creative infrastructure, aiming to enrich community life and regenerate overlooked areas. These buildings are conceived not as isolated monuments but as connective tissue for their sites. Studio Link-Arc’s Shunde Yunlu Wetland Museum is a prime example, designed to function as an extension of the surrounding natural wetlands rather than a barrier, enhancing public access to and appreciation of the local ecology.
Equally compelling is the AYDC Public Art Center by Atelier Xi in Guiyang. This project utilizes a cluster of sculptural forms dispersed throughout the landscape, providing an open, non-traditional setting for art that encourages casual interaction and cultural participation among residents. Such designs highlight a shift where cultural architecture acts as a fluid, accessible catalyst for social cohesion.
Small Scale, Monumental Innovation
The Small Project category is often where the most daring and resourceful ideas emerge, thriving under the constraints of limited budget and size. This year, the nominees showcase both poetic simplicity and technological audacity. On one hand, the Seaside Pavilion on Chai Shan Island by GN Architects is a masterclass in minimalist design, providing a contemplative space that foregrounds the raw, remote beauty of its coastal setting.
On the other, the shortlist features a major technological landmark: the Desert Ark by DesignReserve. This pioneering structure, located in the harsh environment of the Tengger Desert, is one of the world’s first successful buildings constructed using 3D-printed concrete in an extreme environment. This innovative project demonstrates an ability to adapt advanced manufacturing techniques to solve challenges of sustainability and rapid construction in previously inaccessible terrains.
Interiors that Defy Gravity and Movement
The Interior Design categories, particularly Leisure & Wellbeing, reveal a fascinating trend toward interiors that celebrate dynamic movement and open up challenging urban spaces. A standout in this category is Moreprk Skyline by AAN Architects in Shanghai. This project takes the concept of a high-altitude skate park, a place for extreme sports, and encases it in a suspended glass box.
The design, inspired by the curved trajectories of skateboarding, reimagines a simple interior as a “three-dimensional theater” that commands spectacular, kinetic views of the city expressway below. By turning a recreational space into an architectural spectacle, Moreprk Skyline challenges the traditional notions of gravity and urban wellness, offering a powerful metaphor for the freedom and energy of contemporary Chinese youth culture.
