COLLECTIVE Completes Christie's New APAC Headquarters at The Henderson in Hong Kong
COLLECTIVE has completed the interior design for Christie’s new Asia Pacific headquarters at The Henderson, a new 36-storey office tower designed by Zaha Hadid Architects in the heart of Central, Hong Kong. Spanning 50,000 square feet across the 6th to 9th floors, the headquarters features a saleroom, museum-standard galleries, dedicated client lounges, and open offices. Christie’s new Asia Pacific home serves as a one-stop central hub for collectors, poised to deliver an unparalleled client experience in the auction industry. COLLECTIVE’s design reflects a deep understanding of Christie’s needs, offering a versatile environment capable of showcasing a diverse range of art and luxury objects, from intimate pieces to large-scale installations.
The spatial organization of the new headquarters inside The Henderson tower is carefully designed to optimize functionality and enhance client interaction. The more public-facing areas, including the main reception, galleries, and auction spaces, are situated on the 6th and 7th floors. The 8th floor houses the Client Hub with lounges, private viewing areas and a new art library, with part of the floor reserved for staff areas, while the entire 9th floor is exclusively dedicated to staff. An internal staircase connects the 6th, 7th, and 8th floors, offering a unique and direct circulation between galleries, auction events and the Client Hub. At each stair landing, the abstract white wall surfaces are punctured by several luminous sculptural vitrines, specially crafted for the focused display of small highlight objects. The staff areas embody Christie’s “One Team” concept, with open workstations zoned into neighborhoods, organized around “piazzas” that include meeting rooms, phone booths, and common areas for lounging, working, and dining. These piazzas foster collaboration and well-being, while dedicated wellness spaces, such as resting zones and a mother’s room, further support the health and comfort of the Christie’s team.
Unlike a typical institutional gallery or museum which might feature 2 to 3 exhibitions in a year, Christie’s new business model required a fluid and flexible space that could function year-round with more than a dozen different exhibitions and events in a year. At the core of COLLECTIVE’S design solution is a meticulously planned innovative changeover strategy, utilizing a series of large, electronically movable walls and sliding walls that can easily transform the spatial layout on the 6th and 7th gallery floors. A series of floor-mounted electronically movable walls, some of which are over 14 metres wide, can be positioned at either end of the room to keep the entire space open, or moved along a set of tracks to subdivide the space into smaller galleries according to exhibition needs. Complementing these are ceiling-hung sliding walls that run perpendicular to the floor-mounted walls, enabling a multitude of spatial configurations. This strategy of movable wall systems minimizes wastages of exhibition making and saves turnaround time by significantly reducing the need for constructing and demolishing temporary walls during exhibition changes. On the 7th-floor, together with the movable wall system, a comprehensive set of retractable audio-visual systems – large-scale sliding LED screens, ceiling-hung drop-down video production cameras and multiple rows of stage lighting bars – have been designed to be easily deployed, allowing the gallery to be converted into a live broadcast-ready auction room for up to 250 guests. This unique adaptability supports Christie’s year-round calendar of events, ensuring an enhanced client and visitor experience with minimal operational setup time.
Committed to sustainability, the design of Christie’s new headquarters targets LEED Platinum certification. The innovative movable wall system significantly reduces construction waste, while the use of recyclable materials such as aluminum and natural materials like timber and stone underscores the environmental durability considerations of the project. Additionally, the use of automated lighting and smart building control systems contribute to overall energy efficiency across the space.
Betty Ng, Founder of COLLECTIVE, said: “This is a project that took 3 years to complete. As you can imagine, placing a multi-functional auction house within four floors of an office tower that is still under construction is far from straightforward. The design of Christie’s Asia Pacific headquarters is not an interior design project that focuses on the decorative; it is a comprehensive architectural endeavor to offer a space that lets the art and objects shine, while offering an infrastructure that is future-ready for Christie’s growth. By introducing a truly flexible design mechanism, we have significantly reduced the need for temporary constructions while enhanced the synergy between departments, programs, and people, making Christie’s new headquarters the first of its kind in the auction world.”
Chi Yan Chan, Project Director at COLLECTIVE, said: “The opportunity to work on a project of this scale and significance is rare. Together with Christie’s, our team was dedicated to ensuring that every detail was considered, from the flexibility of the gallery spaces to the integration of advanced technologies that enhance the client experience. We believe this project sets a new standard for the design of auction houses and art galleries worldwide.”
Francis Belin, President, Christie’s Asia Pacific, commented: “The opening of our Asia Pacific headquarters at The Henderson marks a defining moment for Christie’s. COLLECTIVE has delivered an exceptional design that not only showcases art and luxury objects in their best light but also fosters collaboration and innovation within our teams. Their flexible, future-ready spatial solution facilitates seamless transitions between auctions, exhibitions, and private events, ensuring an unparalleled experience for our clients year-round. The thoughtful integration of sustainable features aligns with our commitment to responsible business practices, setting a new industry benchmark and reinforcing Christie’s market leadership.”
