SHANGCENG DESIGN-Ping Design: Winner of International Residential Architecture Awards 2024. The homeowner, having studied art and design in the UK, shares a distinctive perspective with us on what constitutes good design. We believe that design doesn’t always align with trends; blurring boundaries and achieving suitability and moderation epitomize good design. Our goal is to tailor spaces to his unique state, narrating the story of “how to be oneself” through spatial arrangements.

After listening to the homeowner’s tales of their previous home, designer Zhang Ping aimed to preserve cherished memories while reflecting the contemporary, liberated lifestyle of today’s youth.

Disrupting the conventional living room setup, the designer injected a more youthful and liberated lifestyle into the home by incorporating a studio—a space for painting, playing music, socializing, and listening to music. Here, one can be alone, move freely, indulge in undisturbed fantasies, or simply gaze at the courtyard’s stone wall.

The thick brick structure of the old house posed challenges for traditional renovations. Instead of costly removal, the design team turned these flaws into features. Strengthening the tunnel-like feel of the arched doorways transformed them into artistic installations, enriching spatial depth and evoking emotional transitions upon entry.

Within this space, boundaries vanish, allowing unrestricted movement without distinctions of formality or leisure. It wraps itself in a state of isolation from the external world, with restrained object displays shielding occupants from external disturbances.

The ground floor’s central zone, focused around a Western kitchen and dining area, creates an open space with a coherent visual and functional flow, featuring a large island area catering to a more youthful lifestyle.

In the bedroom loft, dusty memories preserve past poetry from youthful days, now distant with adulthood. Managing a software company while pursuing artistic endeavors, the home serves as a bridge between past and present.

Today, the narrow loft struggles to accommodate modern living. The designer opens up the loft, giving the bedroom a loftier layout. Curves reshape the roof structure, and preserved arched windows bridge memories of the sky with the present.

The designer envisions the courtyard retaining old trees and stone walls while integrating fresh architectural elements. Scattered stones, plants, sunken steps, and rough pebbles aim to create a wild garden ambiance, allowing urban dwellers to immerse themselves in nature.

Project Details:-
Firm
SHANGCENG DESIGN-Ping Design

Architect
Zhang Ping

Project Name
A Modern Avant-Garde Home

Project Category
Residential Interior Design Built

Team
Scheme Design: Yang Momo

Project Location
Beijing, China

Country
China

Photography ©Credit
Zheng Yan