ISABELLE LEE
Multidisciplinary Designer &  Strategist


→ Currently
At the Harvard University Graduate School of Design  
A Design Researcher at the MIT AgeLab
Member of the 2025-26 Climate Leaders at Harvard University

→ Previously
Architectural Designer turned Creative Strategist.

Shaped by radical speculation at Cook Haffner (Peter Cook, Archigram), ecological rigor at Henning Larsen, social impact at TEN-Arquitectos, and experiential storytelling at Rockwell Group. I bring a multi-lens strategic lens to complex, human-centered design challenges.

Imaginative spirit cultivated at the Rhode Island School of Design


About
CV
Work
Case Studies
The Field

TCL HEADQUARTERSDesigning a Workplace of Innovation
Project Details

Location
Shenzhen, China

Timeline
10 Weeks

Typology
49,000m2
Mixed Use Office  

Team
Henning Larsen Architects
Claude Godfrey - Design Director  
Elva Tang - Managing Director
Sustainability Team
Local Architects

Role
Lead Design Strategist - Workplace & Retail Ecosystem

Responsibilities
Operational & Asset Optimization
Cross- Functional Coordination
Stakeholder Engagement
Experience Design
Narrative Strategy
Overview


The Challenge
How might we transform a static corporate "silo" into a dynamic engine for innovation?

Traditional headquarters often act as physical barriers to the rapid collaboration required in the world’s fastest-growing economic zone. We needed to balance an iconic, sculptural identity with a human-centric interior that fosters community wellbeing. The Approach  

Fusing nature and technology to create an "Urban Ecological Screen”.

We moved beyond the "fixed container" office model to design a vertical hub optimized for social collision. By integrating vertical mobility with a plethora of shared programs, the architecture acts as a mediator between TCL’s high-tech legacy and its future vision. The Impact

The proposal successfully redefined the headquarters as a catalyst for urban transformation. By prioritizing "boundless creativity" and user experience, we proved that a private corporate asset can actively enhance the social fabric and wellbeing of its city.
Strategy


The project’s success is anchored in its role as an urban mediator, designed to seamlessly integrate diverse user groups through a complex, multi-modal connectivity network. By moving away from the "gated" model, the design creates a permeable interface that serves the public, the tenant, and the city Exterior Visualization

Multi-Modal Connectivity
The design prioritizes Urban Permeability, ensuring that the public flow is not hindered by the site’s high-density footprint.

Site Fluidity:
Provides clear, accessible entrances from major urban nodes, facilitating easy access through the site to the public park.

Community Mobility:
Users are encouraged to move at their own pace along a wide pedestrian retail corridor that links all programmatic elements.

Public Ground Floor Strategy
Private Tower Strategy



The Organizational "Collision"

The project is designed to align with TCL’s "Creative Life" motto by treating the office tower as a Vertical City rather than a static container. By integrating a highly interconnected network of shared amenities and spatial typologies, the design shifts the focus from desk-count to social connectivity.


Dual Lobby System:
Implements a strategic dual-entry system to manage high-volume traffic while tailoring the experience to distinct tenant requirements.


Interconnected Amenities:
Permeates the tower with shared programs that function as a "spatial network," designed to maximize the unplanned interactions that drive collaborative innovation.



The Inside-Out Mall

We moved away from the enclosed model, organizing anchor shops and boutique retail on the primary floors to mimic a traditional streetscape. By utilizing double-height sunken plazas, we strategically brought daylight and nature into the underground commercial zones traditionally low-value spaces to enhance their marketability and user experience.

The Streetscape Realignment:
Reframing retail layout as a "borderless street" to drive urban engagement and social vibrancy.

Strategic Daylighting:
Using sunken plazas to elevate the commercial value and user experience of sub-grade retail zones.

Public Activity Hub:
Designing high-density commercial space that functions as a high-quality human environment for the local community.








Interior Visualization

Exterior Visualization

Flexible Creative Spaces

By positioning the public art center on the fourth and fifth floors with 24/7 access, the architecture functions as a Civic Service Layer. This move integrates the corporate headquarters into the city’s social fabric, transforming a private asset into a round-the-clock cultural destination.

Extreme Spatial Flexibility:
The central atrium is designed as a convertible volume, engineered to transition between large-scale art exhibitions, live concerts, and immersive installations.

Utility Maximization: By supporting a high variety of entertainment activities, the space ensures consistent foot traffic and cultural relevance beyond standard business hours.

Future-Proofing: Multi-use features allow the brand’s physical presence to adapt to changing market needs without requiring structural intervention.




Interior Visualization

Interior Visualization

Multi Tenant Assets

Instead of a fixed corporate shell, the low-zone floor plates are designed as elastic assets. By highly modulating the floor plates, the design accommodates a 30% divestment strategy, ensuring the building can seamlessly transition between a single-user headquarters and a high-efficiency multi-tenant lease model.

Market Adaptability: The plan is optimized to suit diverse leasing strategies and various prospective tenant scales.

Efficiency at Scale: Highly modulated plates ensure maximum square-footage utility regardless of the tenant's organizational structure.
The Living Room


For the upper-zone TCL offices, the architecture moves from "workspace" to "social infrastructure". By decoupling the core position from rigid departmental boundaries, the floor plates become a spatial "Living Room" designed to be reconfigured as teams evolve.

Agile Typologies: The layout accommodates a spectrum of office types, meeting rooms, and shared amenities.

Team-Centric Design: Spatial arrangements are tailored to the specific functional and social needs of diverse departments, fostering cross-pollination. Executive Ecosystem

The executive tier is reframed as a wellbeing-led leadership hub rather than a traditional isolated suite. By integrating exclusive terraces and private gardens, the design leverages environmental quality as a tool for executive performance and privacy.

Panoramic Integration: Strategic core placement ensures maximum daylighting and 360-degree views for the highest-value areas.

Vertical Amenity Stack: The direct adjacency to a business clubhouse and sky garden ensures that "Leisure and Wellbeing" programs are directly accessible to leadership, setting the cultural tone for the organization.


Growth Enterprises
Private TCL Offices
Executive Offices

Passive Performance & Environmental Psychology

In a global headquarters, wellbeing is a Key Performance Indicator. By using the 'Compass of Wellbeing' to drive the building's orientation and envelope performance, we move from a standard office mandate to a Human-Centric Service Model that pays dividends in employee health and sustainable productivity.


The Compass of Wellbeing:
A multi-parametric framework used to balance and optimize the mental and physical comfort of the TCL workforce.

Data-Driven Envelope Strategy:
Optimizing Window-to-Wall Ratios (WWR) to maximize passive performance and long-term asset resilience.

Stable Light Integration: Utilizing a permeable northern facade to provide high-quality, glare-free daylighting and reduce energy consumption.

Climate Sensitive Design

50% Carbon Reduction Strategy:
Implementing a hybrid Concrete-CLT structural system to radically minimize the building's lifecycle carbon footprint.

30% Reduction in Energy Use:
An optimized facade design that reduces operational energy consumption and hedges against future carbon volatility.

Climate-Adaptive Wellbeing:
Extending the comfort season through data-driven solar mapping and natural ventilation pathways.


Gallery



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