In the heart of Shanghai’s Yanlord Arcadia residential complex, Pok Kobkongsanti of T.R.O.P: terrains + open space introduces Lacy Steps Garden, a nine-meter-deep sunken courtyard that serves as a sculptural landmark and a communal living space. The project becomes a ‘living core’ that connects homes, amenities, and nature across three levels.
The entire design pivots around a fluid geometric composition, anchored by a cascading staircase that stitches together the basement, ground, and second floors. As users descend, they encounter a series of unfolding scenes, including a badminton court, a swimming pool, and a tea room tucked into a shaded niche. Ascending leads to a sun-filled gym and a softly lit community library.
The distinctive metal mesh facade of Lacy Steps Garden functions like a veil, draping the void with an airy transparency. Permeable and refined, it welcomes sunlight and rain, nurturing the lush area below while diffusing glare and hard edges. Through this mesh, the landscape design team at TROP: terrains + open space echoes the language of the surrounding architecture, fostering a visual continuity between building and landscape, inside and out.
The central platform, part amphitheater, part terrace, offers a flexible stage for everyday life. Its sculpted steps and built-in seating invite a range of informal activities, from morning tai chi to impromptu performances or quiet reading. Here, architecture offers a framework for spontaneity and community, where social interaction and solitude coexist. Even the railing’s curvature is fine-tuned for comfort, transforming infrastructure into intimate experience.
At a time when private residential developments often default to decorative greenery or isolated pockets of open space, Lacy Steps Garden offers a different proposition with its sculpted landscape that operates as infrastructure, atmosphere, and social condenser.
▲ TROP设计事务所设计了Lacy Steps花园住宅
TROP: terrains + open space introduces Lacy Steps Garden
▲ 场地内有深9m的下沉庭院,楼梯整体成雕塑形象,成为公共活动的核心空间
the nine-meter-deep sunken courtyard serves as a sculptural landmark and a communal living space
▲ 该项目设计的三层阶梯巧妙地将建筑、配套设施与自然景观联系了起来
the project connects homes, amenities, and nature across three levels
▲ 当居民从楼梯顶部向下漫步,可以看到不同的庭院景观,视野内容丰富
as users descend, they encounter a series of unfolding scenes
▲ Lacy Steps花园住宅的楼梯表面材质为白色金属网,像是覆盖了一层白纱,有着朦胧的感觉
the distinctive metal mesh facade of Lacy Steps Garden functions like a veil
▲ 庭院内的楼梯平台兼具露天剧场与活动露台的功能,为居民的日常生活提供了一个多姿多彩的舞台
the central platform, part amphitheater, part terrace, offers a flexible stage for everyday life
▲ 该住宅的建立使得居民之间开始自发性的互动和进行社区活动
architecture offers a framework for spontaneity and community
▲ 楼梯整体轻盈通透,漂浮于庭院之上
draping the void with an airy transparency
▲ 平面图 | 图纸绘制:TROP设计事务所
plan | drawings byTROP: terrains + open space