(CNN)The World Interior of the Year shortlist has been announced, bringing together 2017's best designed hotels, restaurants, offices and retail spaces.
But while the nominees hail from around the globe, there is one clear winner: China.
More than a third of the 78 finalists are based in Greater China, including 19 from the mainland, five from Hong Kong and four from Taiwan.
Among the nominees are a co-working space in Shanghai, a minimalist Beijing comic store and a sleek Japanese restaurant in the southern city of Shenzhen. At least one Chinese interior was shortlisted in each of the award program's nine categories, which encompass residential, commercial and public spaces.
Wework Weihai Road by Linehouse (Shanghai)
Changing attitudes toward design
At the time of the inaugural World Interior of the Year awards in 2011, fewer than 10 percent of the finalists came from China. And all of those projects were based in Shanghai.
Fast-forward six years, and cities less familiar to the international design circuit -- like Hefei and Baoding -- now appear on the shortlist.
CHA Chinese Restaurant at Wanda Vista Hefei by Wanda Hotel Design Institute (Hefei)
Half of the nominated projects in this year's Bars and Restaurants category can be found in Greater China. Among them is Big Small, a 366-square-foot coffee shop and guesthouse designed by the Beijing-based firm Office AIO.
According to the company's co-founder, Tim Kwan, the shortlist reflects changing attitudes toward design in China.
"We noticed the drastic changes happening in the architectural and design landscape around the time of the 2008 Beijing Olympics," said Kwan, who co-founded Office AIO in 2012. "And we wanted to get ourselves involved in these opportunities.
"The market is becoming more sensitive to the idea and values of 'design' -- both the clients and the public are now seeking innovation and uniqueness."
China's growing prominence at the awards is partly the result of organizers' efforts to reach more corners of the world.
But it also reflects the changing interiors market, according to Paul Finch, program director at Inside World Festival of Interiors.
"The Chinese architectural community is on a bit of a roll at the moment," he said over the phone. "When we started, entries from China were more likely to come from international practices that happened to have been commissioned to do buildings in Shanghai, Beijing or Shenzhen.
Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Culture: Completed Buildings -- Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology, Lisbon, Portugal by AL_A – This building by Amanda Levete and Associates is located on the Tagus River, and is a multi-purpose facility designed in such a way that visitors can walk over, under and within the building itself.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Infrastructure: Future Projects -- Brommy New Footbridge, Berlin, Germany by SPANS Assosciates – This proposed footbridge uses mirrors to "open a new virtual dimension." The design would be located on a site near the East Side Gallery in Berlin, where two bridges have already been built and destroyed.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Competition Entries: Future Projects -- Shelter on the Edge, Aleppo, Syria by Design and More International – Conceived as a solution to shelters housing growing numbers of refugees, Shelter on the Edge in Aleppo, Syria, is designed to allow for new units to be added onto existing housing units when the need arises.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Religion: Completed Buildings -- The Chapel of St. Benedict and St. Scholastica, Pambujan, Philippines by WTA Architecture and Design Studio – This chapel is located within a hospital in Pambujan, a small rural town in the Philippines. The chapel features stained glass in the entry as well as the back of the alter.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Transport: Completed Buildings -- Salerno Maritime Terminal, Salerno, Italy by Zaha Hadid Architects – This ferry terminal in Salerno, Italy, features multiple levels, with visitors entering on the ground level, and moving up through internal ramps to the upper levels where they can board and disembark the ferry.
Swipe through the gallery for some of the other buildings to make this year's World Architecture Festival shortlist.
Swipe through the gallery for some of the other buildings to make this year's World Architecture Festival shortlist.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Small Projects Prize: Completed Buildings -- The Cutting Edge Pharmacy, Himeji City, Japan by Matsuya Art Works and KTX archiLAB – This pharmacy in Himeji City, Japan, features a minimalist white interior with black accents. The architects hope that the interior will convey a sense of "advanced medical care" that patients would expect.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Health: Completed Buildings -- Fitzroy Crossing Renal Hostel, Fitzroy Crossing, Australia by Iredale Pedersen Hook Architects – Designed as a treatment residence for indigenous people suffering from renal disease, the Fitzroy Crossing Renal Hostel in Fitzroy Crossing, Australia, allows patients to receive treatment while still being close to their family members and the community. The space features six small houses, and can accommodate a total of 19 people.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Small Projects Prize: Completed Buildings -- The Smile, London, United Kingdom by Alison Brooks Architects – Initially revealed as part of the 2016 London Design Festival, The Smile is constructed using American tulipwood, a material said to be stronger than concrete.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Display: Completed Buildings -- Zhuhai Opera House, Zhuhai, China by CR Institute of Architectural & Urban Design – The Zhuhai Opera House in Zhuhai, China, is built of two shell-like structures, the larger of which sits at 90 meters (295 feet) tall, and the smaller at 60 meters (197 feet) tall. Collectively, both buildings can seat over 2,000 people.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
House: Completed Buildings -- Binh House, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam by Vo Trong Nghia Architects – The Binh House in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, features several spaces -- from the roof to the balconies -- for trees and plants. The architects hope that this will increase the presence of green spaces in cities.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Display: Completed Buildings -- Petersen Automotive Museum, Los Angeles, US by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates – Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates were tasked with renovating the Peterson Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. One of the renovations included a steel "wrap" around the building's existing framework.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Villa: Completed Buildings -- Triangle House, São Paulo, Brazil by Bernardes Arquitetura – This Sao Paulo, Brazil, home is built with a triangular floor plan, and maximizes natural light through the use of a skylight and printed glass brise-soleils.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Housing: Completed Buildings -- Urban Rigger, Copenhagen, Denmark by BIG - Bjarke Ingels Group – Conceived as a solution to rising housing prices in major cities, BIG's Urban Rigger is built with re-purposed shipping containers. It is the first floating, carbon neutral housing made from shipping containers.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Landscape: Garden of the Mind, Berlin, Germany by P Landscape – Designed by the Thai Landscape Architecture firm PLandscape, the Garden of the Mind is inspired by the country's culture and landscapes.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
New & Old: Completed Buildings -- Printemps Haussmann, Paris, France by Uufie – Printemps is a Parisian department store that was originally built in 1865. This redesign introduces an atrium to the complex that allows visitors to see multiple levels.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Hotel & Leisure: Completed Buildings -- Atlas Hotel Hoi An, Hoi An, Vietnam by Vo Trong Nghia Architects – This hotel's exterior is made using locally-sourced sandstone. Plants help to improve ventilation and provide shade to the building's interior.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Hotel & Leisure: Completed Buildings -- British Airways i360, Brighton, United Kingdom by Marks Barfield Architects – At 162 meters (531 feet) tall this is the tallest moving observation tower in the world. The glass observation pod can hold 200 people and features 360 degree views of Brighton and surrounding areas.
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Photos: World Building of the Year 2017 shortlist
Civic and Community: Completed Buildings -- Suzhou Chapel, Suzhou, China by Neri&Hu Design and Research Office – This chapel in Suzhou, China features a perforated metal facade, and uses multiple windows throughout the space to best utilize natural light.
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"But that's starting to change. The number of (local) Chinese practices has increased (and) Chinese architects are starting to find their own voice. On one hand, you have Chinese practices doing big shopping centers and commercial buildings like any commercial architect anywhere around the world," he said.
"On the other you have people like (Pritzker Architecture Prize-winner) Wang Shu saying that there's an indiginous Chinese architectural language waiting to come out, that's not a replica of historical styles but certainly owes quite a lot to them."
A festival of interiors
This year's shortlist continues a recent run of form for China-based designers in this competition. Last year's overall winner was AN Design's futuristic retail space in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.
NUBO by PAL Design Group (Sydney)
But Chinese designers were not the only big winners. Australian companies racked up 12 nominations, including four for SJB -- the most for a single firm in this year's awards.
The competition winners will be decided this November in Berlin, where finalists will present their work at the Inside World Festival of Interiors. The three-day gathering is a sister event of the World Architecture Festival, which recently announced its 2017 shortlist for World Building of the Year.
