A coffee shop at the headquarters of BMW China in Beijing’s Gateway Plaza may not necessarily be the place to bring in natural elements, but that’s exactly how Soda Architects approached the design, using mountains and rivers to drive the narrative forward, achieving an art installation at the same time. “‘Mountains’ deliver a cozy feeling of privacy to the open lobby,” says firm cofounder Jiang Yuan, while the coming and going of visitors “becomes ‘rivers’ extending into the distance, just like gentle streams of water flowing through the mountains,” adds Song Chen, a principal and cofounder.

These “mountains” are formed by 300 vertical champagne-plated “leaves” of varying heights set in curved wood bases. Inside the café, peacock blue tones complement refined solid wood and marble materials, while 1,000 strips of white acrylic and reflective stainless steel hanging from the ceiling simulate the flow of a stream of water. The “stream” is born at the entrance to the lobby, then winds through the café to eventually “dissipate like gentle water flowers under the sun” at the outdoor terrace, says Chen.