The project
The Luna is Make’s second residential tower in Hong Kong. Located in the bustling district of Wan Chai, the 32-storey building sits on a triple-height podium, together appearing as a single carved object rising out of a landscaped garden.
Both tower and podium are clad in champagne-gold powder-coated aluminium rainscreen panels that alternate between solid and perforated. The square, perforated balconies covering the north and west elevations reference the area’s history of printing, echoing traditional printing blocks.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-3-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=140&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=0cea24097c497986ef8c4d3815d58a23 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-3-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=280&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=e3ff8b10f0e4271940d0c1ebc7db5389 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-3-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=512&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=f83ea847ea751d34e89328db6e6587a4 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-3-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=683&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=b0a96f46135f377c69948bdaea9dff86 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-3-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=933&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=41eb3b8bca8583e4dd9db11206b8f9c8 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-3-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1067&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=660109c5ea49bdc5e91470a09d95bb0e 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-3-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1280&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=6ee8dc800c6c5f8570740afdd52c156d 1920w)
The model
The Luna model began life as a 3D digital model that wasn’t suitable to become a physical one. That’s where Marcus came in, and started importing 2D PDF line drawings into Rhino. From there, he scaled them and began drawing up the components.
The core
Once the new digital model was ready, the first step was creating the core, which is located in the north-eastern corner of the building. Made from 5mm frosted acrylic, it is laminated with two layers: the inner one is an untreated plate, while the outer one has 5mm slots cut into it for the L-shaped floorplates to slide into. The floorplates also have slots cut into them, with the interior walls created as ‘comb pieces’ to slot into them.
Due to the height of the building – 32 storeys – some of the core components didn’t fit into the laser bed, so they had to be done as smaller sections. These couldn’t be joined as simple butt joints (ie two parts glued together), but rather had to be locked together in a mechanical system.
Another challenge was that, because the core is off-centre, the weight of floorplates all hung on the front end. In order to make sure the building didn’t snap off or fall over due to this uneven weight distribution, the core drops ‘below ground’ into the box base, securely anchoring the model. The base is made of MDF and clad in a light grey acrylic.
The finishing touch was lining the frosted acrylic core with LED strips, transforming it into a glowing lightbox.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-4-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=140&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=b6b3dddc38561dd10c19e4285e4f8456 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-4-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=280&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=90b73041e507a1c99623315df2b7c2ff 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-4-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=512&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=55f8bcfd9644f5eaf3ea0982ea0c9c7f 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-4-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=683&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=6cb8a9acb3e6d2654e05815c09d8983d 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-4-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=933&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=b911f62983cbc4176865d27e5e265c3c 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-4-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1067&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=8ff0b7bf64670d58b13945885e7b0477 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-4-1.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1280&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=55686533362b21a3115c7c5cf94a0e6e 1920w)
The cladding
Aside from the balconies, The Luna is a relatively flat building, with cladding panels and glazing nearly flush. To help differentiate them from a distance, Marcus selected materials with ever-so-slightly different thicknesses.
The cladding panels are made from 0.5mm acrylic that’s been sprayed gold on the front to mimic the champagne-gold, powder-coated aluminium rainscreen panels of the actual building. The paint colour used for the model was toned down from the original, more yellow-gold shade we had. On the back-side, the panels have been sprayed silver to reflect the LED lighting from the core back into the building, so that it doesn’t shine through.
On the two main elevations, Marcus used four large, 1mm smoked acrylic panels for the glazing – two for the sections above the refuge level and two below that. He chose smoked acrylic because it matched the glazing of the real building better than clear would.
Masking the panels off, he sprayed the back with a nearly-black dark grey to create the dark vertical strips of glazing. On the front side he attached the cladding panels and brass window frames. Marcus then attached the four finished large panels to the core with emulsion glue.
![#](https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-2-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=315&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=210&s=6d0b2bd67199df04777d42bd51885415 210w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-2-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=630&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=420&s=b06fe1c28ad2cd47445d44d096b87304 420w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-2-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1152&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=768&s=e670d560d87cd954d3d1e077aabac51a 768w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-2-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=1536&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1024&s=fc5aee6942b991ba46835992e934569b 1024w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-2-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2100&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1400&s=1e99245f1eae133aea4e3be1f8123623 1400w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-2-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2400&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1600&s=f5db219bcb717e76760fc2c1e6595927 1600w,https://make-arch.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fwww.makearchitects.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F09%2FLuna-2-2.jpg?auto=format&crop=center&fit=crop&h=2880&ixlib=php-1.2.1&w=1920&s=949f698d24c6d8d3af3c69885fdcbef9 1920w)
The balconies
Fitting neatly into slots made in the four large acrylic panels are 200 brass-etched balconies with a gradually perforated motif. Working with 4D Modelshop on the etching, Marcus went through a lot of testing, making several versions before the perforated pattern was just right.
Once that was right, the brass was bent into the balconies’ square shape. The balcony floors are made of 2mm acrylic, and the soffits share the same ‘score’ pattern as on the actual building.
Animating the model
Marcus used our Ultimaker 3D printers to create additional components to animate the model. These include beds, sofas, tables and chairs – all arranged according to the actual layout – the stairs in the building’s triple-height podium, and the cars on the street. The people (which weren’t 3D printed) are all sprayed silver, and the custom-made, brass-etched eucalyptus trees are from 4D Modelshop.