"We want to build a vertical version of the urban neighborhood," says Xia Jun, regional design director of Gensler, design firm of the tower. "The winding shape is inspired by Shanghai's romantic and yielding urban dynamic. It also effectively reduces the wind (effect) as Shanghai is often affected by typhoons."

A majority of the buildings are designed by international architects, except for the Xiangshan campus at the China Academy of Art by Wang Shu, who won the world's top architecture prize Pritzker, the Central Park Plaza by Ma Yansong and the China Zun by Wu Chen.

While Chinese cities are often called the testing field for international architects, Ma says this is simply a process a city has to go through before becoming a truly magnificent city.

"A city has to be very open and significant to attract so many architects. The question is how we choose from them," he says.

Ma's new project the Central Park Plaza is now under construction. Situated between the CBD area in Beijing and the Chaoyang Park, the 120,000-square-meter complex aims to connect the city with nature by implementing Ma's concept of Shan Shui City, the city of mountains and water.

While the list is dominated by skyscrapers, which usually stands for wealth and status in the city, Chinese author Liu Xinwu, who is also an architecture critic, called for more public space at the announcement of the top 10 buildings.

"As a citizen, I wish there was more space for the public both in and outside the architecture. So people are more aware of the role architecture can play in the city."