Fluid Geometry in West Kowloon: Derry Ainsworth Documents ZHA Architects’ International Gateway Centre (IGC)
By Derry Ainsworth Categories: Architecture Photography, Creative Composition, Travel Journal | Barcelona, Spain
Capturing a structure defined by continuous motion requires an eye that refuses to stand still. Commissioned by Sun Hung Kai Properties to photograph the International Gateway Centre (IGC) in West Kowloon, architectural photographer Derry Ainsworth approached Zaha Hadid Architects’ (ZHA) landmark commercial complex through a study of dynamic angles, extreme scale shifts, and dramatic perspectives. Rather than relying on standard street-level elevations, Ainsworth explored the development from high vantages, low-angle geometric alignments, and compressed telephoto viewpoints. By varying his visual approach across multiple lighting conditions and focal lengths, he produced a comprehensive photographic narrative that translates the building’s fluid, three-dimensional form into a striking series of two-dimensional compositions.
The International Gateway Centre: Vision, Timeline, and Purpose
Positioned at 1 Wui Man Road in the heart of West Kowloon, the International Gateway Centre rises directly above the operational High Speed Rail West Kowloon Terminus. Developed by Sun Hung Kai Properties and designed by ZHA Architects, construction on the monumental 3.2-million-square-foot complex spanned six years from 2020 to 2026. Building atop an active cross-border rail terminus required immense engineering precision, resulting in an integrated urban hub that links the High Speed Rail with three MTR lines at the adjacent Kowloon and Austin stations,the Airport Express, and the 1.5-kilometer landscaped pedestrian West Kowloon Parkway.
The development serves as a next-generation commercial and civic anchor for Hong Kong. It comprises 2.6 million square feet of Grade A, people-centric office space split across two pairs of interconnected towers at the northern and southern ends of the site, alongside 600,000 square feet of experiential retail and dining across its five lower levels, known as Stage IGC. Surrounding and weaving through these commercial zones are nearly 100,000 square feet of public garden terraces, sheltered plazas, and sky gardens.
ZHA Architects drew inspiration from organic, botanical forms and the natural topography of Kowloon. The towers are divided into a series of interconnected vertical "petals," each angled with a distinct orientation and height to prevent neighbouring towers from overlooking one another while respecting the ridgeline of Kowloon’s northern mountains. At the lower levels, the towers taper inward to reduce their structural footprint, opening up expansive outdoor civic spaces and encouraging natural sea breezes to flow through the district. At the crowns, the volumes taper once again as vertical shading pleats extend over the rooftops, forming sculptural "halos" that shelter planted roof terraces and sky gardens.
Four Perspectives on Fluid Architecture
To document the sheer scale and intricacy of the International Gateway Centre, Ainsworth structured the commission around four distinct photographic categories, each highlighting a core facet of ZHA’s architectural language.
1. The Building in Context
A structure of this magnitude does not merely sit within a neighbourhood; it reshapes the urban fabric around it. In his wide contextual frames, Ainsworth situates the IGC between the dense, rectilinear grid of Jordan and Yau Ma Tei and the open waterfront expanse of the West Kowloon Cultural District. These photographs highlight the dialogue between the sweeping, ribbed roof of the existing High Speed Rail station and the rising glass petals of the IGC towers above it.By framing the complex alongside the surrounding mountain ridgeline and Victoria Harbour, the contextual series illustrates how the development acts as both a physical pedestrian bridge and a visual transition between traditional Kowloon streetscapes and Hong Kong’s modern cultural harbourfront.
2. Patterns and Textures
When stripped of its surrounding skyline, the facade of the International Gateway Centre becomes an exercise in parametric rhythm and material contrast. Ainsworth’s detail-oriented frames isolate the building’s vertical shading pleats, which wrap the exterior in continuous, undulating lines. As the towers taper and curve, the spacing between the glazing panels and metallic fins shifts subtly, creating an optical sense of movement across the curtain wall. By focusing tightly on where the interlocking petals meet and where the vertical pleats curl over the rooftops to form the signature halos, these photographs transform steel, aluminium, and high-performance glass into abstract studies of line, shadow, and curvature
3. Interior Spaces
The fluid geometry of the exterior continues uninterrupted inside the complex. Ainsworth’s interior documentation captures the soaring, light-drenched atriums, the expansive column-free floorplates, and the sculptural central pavilion that houses panoramic lifts connecting the lower retail levels to the upper plazas. Inside the lobbies and circulation zones, rigid corners are replaced by sweeping ceilings, recessed linear lighting, and curved glass balustrades that guide the eye naturally through the space. Ainsworth also emphasised the visual permeability of the design, framing shots from within the interior looking out toward the planted terraces to demonstrate how ZHA blurred the boundary between indoor workspace and outdoor greenery.
4. Night Shots
As daylight fades, the International Gateway Centre shifts from a reflective glass sculpture into a luminous beacon on the West Kowloon skyline. Ainsworth’s night photography captures the deliberate restraint and precision of the building’s architectural lighting. Warm interior illumination glows through the sweeping curtain walls, while integrated exterior lighting traces the vertical pleats and illuminates the rooftop halos against the dark sky. Down at the central plaza and multi-level terraces, soft pathway lighting accentuates the curved landscaping and pavilion structures, showcasing how the development is designed to remain an inviting, active civic stage well into the evening.
Technical Execution: Lenses, Motion, Light, and Post-Processing
Translating Zaha Hadid Architects’ non-linear geometry into sharp, balanced photographs demanded a deliberate gear setup, meticulous temporal planning, and exacting post-production.
A Dual-Lens Strategy: Ainsworth executed the majority of the commission using just two lenses: the Sony 16mm f/1.8 and the Sony 50-160mm f/2 GM. The ultra-wide 16mm f/1.8 was essential for exaggerating the sweeping leading lines of the podium, capturing the full vertical sweep of the tapering towers from the central plaza, and encompassing the vast interior atriums. Conversely, the fast Sony 50-160mm f/2 GM telephoto zoom allowed Ainsworth to stand back and compress the overlapping facade petals, isolating tight geometric intersections and repeating structural fins without perspective distortion.
Long Exposures and Human Scale: Because IGC sits atop one of the busiest transit hubs in Asia, managing pedestrian flow in the frame was vital. Ainsworth utilized neutral density (ND) filters to lengthen shutter speeds during daylight and twilight hours. Alternating between locked-off tripod compositions and stabilized handheld slow-shutter techniques, he rendered passing commuters and visitors as soft, kinetic streaks of motion. This deliberate blur provides a sense of human scale and urban energy while anchoring the crisp, motionless permanence of the architecture.
Chasing Directional Light: With towers divided into multi-directional petals that curve and taper at varying angles, flat lighting would have robbed the building of its depth. Tracking the sun’s trajectory was a critical part of the production process. Ainsworth mapped the sun path across West Kowloon to predict the exact windows when specific facades, recessed terraces, and canyon-like plazas would catch grazing directional light or fall into deep, sculptural shade. Executing the shoot across numerous visits at dawn, harsh midday, golden hour, and blue hour allowed him to document how the building’s metallic fins and curved glass shift in mood and tone throughout the day.
Precision Perspective Correction in Post-Production: Shooting with ultra-wide glass like a 16mm lens from street and plaza levels naturally introduces converging verticals when the camera is tilted upward. In the editing suite, Ainsworth used Adobe Lightroom to perform meticulous perspective and geometry corrections,replicating the optical straightening effect of a traditional mechanical tilt-shift lens. Because ZHA’s design already features intentional tapering, organic curves, and non-rectilinear silhouettes, achieving accurate vertical and horizontal alignment was critical. Without precise perspective control, lens distortion would clash with the building's deliberate architectural curves. By carefully truing the structural reference lines and anchoring the surrounding city grid in Lightroom, Ainsworth ensured the final images look balanced, natural, and faithful to the architects' intended proportions.
For devotees of contemporary design, the International Gateway Centre is an essential pilgrimage site. What makes the project stand out upon close inspection is the sheer cohesion of its execution; every exterior pleat, landscaped terrace,interior ceiling curve, and circulation pathway feels born from a single, unified stroke. Through Sun Hung Kai Properties’ ambitious vision and Zaha Hadid Architects’ unmistakable formal mastery, the development elevates a vital transit node into a piece of living urban sculpture, standing tall as one of Hong Kong’s coolest modern architectural accomplishments.
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