River Valley One

Conceived as a dense residential complex along the river, River Valley One is set within a highly mineral urban environment, where the relationship with nature had almost vanished. The site once formed part of a vegetated valley, gradually erased by urban development. The lighting concept was envisioned as a sensitive act of reconnection, reactivating this lost landscape memory.

The strategy developed by Atelier dada is grounded in a core idea: allowing nature to emerge through light, rather than over-emphasizing it. The towers are punctuated with planted containers integrated into stair landings and upper terraces. Filled with grasses and succulents suited to the arid climate, these micro-gardens are subtly illuminated, creating a vertical vegetal presence perceptible at both pedestrian and distant scales.

Across the landscaped areas, light accompanies a variety of uses: pathways, playgrounds, resting areas, and a riverside promenade. Technical spaces at ground level, concealed behind perforated screens, were reimagined as supports for climbing plants and illuminated to form a continuous vegetated sequence throughout the complex.

A family of exclusive wooden luminaires was also designed to mark entrances, guide movement, and introduce a warm, human scale, deliberately contrasting with the surrounding urban density.

The lighting of the privatized riverbank extends this approach, offering residents a calm and intimate relationship with water and the nocturnal landscape, where nature and contemporary living gently converge.

The project was built, but only partially reflects the original lighting and landscape vision. Key elements of the concept were altered or omitted during execution, notably due to low-cost lighting material choices and limited investment in vegetated structures and bespoke luminaires.
Atelier dada does not sign the executed project and shares here only selected fragments of the original concept, as a testimony to the initial vision.