Urban Renewal Leader

Shen Jianghai is a Chinese architect who is hoping to spearhead the positive transformation of the cities in his country.

- Low Shi Ping

Shen Jianghai is in a great place at the moment. Within three years of his founding architecture design firm DAGA, it has been acquired by its major client Ucommune, China’s leading co-working space provider and a unicorn.

The news was announced in September this year, and reflects Ucommune’s commitment to design in its co-working spaces.

It also complements DAGA’s ambition of leading an urban renewal movement across tier one to four cities in China, through transforming office buildings and living spaces such as apartments and commercial compounds.

DAGA’s progress has been remarkable. In 2017 alone, it completed more than 30 projects in over 10 cities in China and abroad. This year, the team has been involved in the transformation, design and construction of large-scale compounds and industrial parks.

d+a caught up with Shen to find out more about this talented young designer who counts Zaha Hadid and Frank Gehry among the architects he looks up to.

How do you feel about the acquisition by Ucommune?