At 623 feet, the atrium of the new Leeza SOHO tower in Beijing just became the tallest in the world, beating out the Burj Al Arab in Dubai by 23 feet. Recently completed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the 45-story skyscraper is a glittering landmark for the Fengtai business district, offering flexible office spaces for both small and medium-sized companies, each with their own views into the remarkable open space at the tower’s center.

The Leeza SOHO is positioned just above an underground subway service tunnel, with a rails station next door. Though its envelope is shaped like a rounded cylinder, the interior has a dynamic layout, with the atrium twisting to create continuous convex openings all the way up to the ceiling.
“This rotation of the atrium intertwines Leeza SOHO’s two halves in a dynamic ‘pas de deus’ with connecting skybridge on levels 13, 24, 35 and 45, its glazed facade giving panoramic views across the city,” say the architects. “Leeza SOHO’s atrium acts as a public square for the new business district, linking all spaces within the tower and providing varying views due to its twisting, sculptural form, creating a fantastic new civic space for Beijing that is directly connected to the city’s transport network.” Not only does the atrium draw natural light all the way down to the building’s lowest levels, it also acts as a “thermal chimney” with an integrated ventilation system to mainta...