"In traditional Chinese architecture, there's a horizontal spatial sequence, one courtyard to another to another,' explains Yim, who founded Rocco Design Architects in Hong Kong in 1982. At iSQUARE, 'we tried to achieve the same thing, but vertically,' says Yim. That meant creating a series of interior spaces that are desirable destinations, in part for their city and Victoria Harbor views. Unlike the kind of mall that only looks inward, iSQUARE 'creates visual contact with the city at various levels," says Yim.

The base of the building is a 12-story retail podium, which supports a cinema complex (including iMax theater) at one end and an additional 12-story 'stack' of fine-dining restaurants at the other. Connecting the theater and restaurant towers is a series of terraces meant for outdoor dining and socializing.

Yim set the building about eight meters back from Peking Road, creating a civic plaza that invites pedestrians to slow down and think about entering. Express escalators are strategically placed along the transparent Nathan Road fa'ade'as if to channel pedestrian movement on the street into the vertical dimension. The sky lobby is also served by escalators that bring visitors directly from a Mass Transit Railway station in the second basement. Along some escalators, images of trees and flowers are projected on walls and seem to grow as passengers move by them, enlivening the journey. (Benoy Architects served as the interior designer.)

From the street, the organization of the building is made clear, almost as if the facade were a cutaway diagram. The opaque sections of the building (where white glass is gently lit by LEDs) give way to transparent sections revealing escalators and sky lobbies. Those sky lobbies are illuminated in red, yellow, and blue, giving each a different appearance. The varied surface treatments mean the building changes character depending on how you look at it. 'Some parts almost disappear, while others have a strong visual impact,' says Yim.

The Tsim Sha Tsui neighborhood of Hong Kong, where iSQUARE is located, doesn't lack for brightly-lit establishments. Indeed, the way to stand out in this part of the city isn't to use neon lights and shiny surfaces, but to manipulate more subtle design elements, such as those Yim chose for iSQUARE.

By creating interesting spatial experiences -- and advertising those experiences through peek-a-boo facades -- Yim has proven that vertically stacked shopping and entertainment venues can succeed.