NEOBRIDGE is an experiment on the relationship between the hotel and the city. The “bridge” is the theme and the solution. 

Between City and Hotel
Neobridge hotel is located at Caojiadu, Shanghai, with St. Michael’s Cathedral in the front and a residential garden facing Suzhou Creek in the back. While keeping the building’s original massing and form unchanged, our goal is to create a comfortable space, in which the city and hotel interact dramatically. 

The original building had repressive basement and a very depressing lobby. We decided to open up the first floor completely, creating a large cavern with a high ceiling and a small arched bridge overhead. Under the bridge is completely open, serving as both the hotel's restaurant and bar, as well as hosting various events, like an extension of the city into the building. The hotel, on the other hand, is hidden on the other side of the bridge, keeping a distance from the city. 

Walking across the bridge therefore becomes the visual center, a sense of ritual as well as the theme of the hotel.

Metaphor of Material: Water and Waterfall
We used materials to express metaphors of water: The ceiling under the bridge is corrugated mirror stainless steel, just like the underwater surface. The exterior “water fall” walls are made of glass blocks, which ensures light and privacy. The concrete walls of the lobby are hand-scraped into a vertical waterfall texture, etc.

Other Details
Solving the layout of rooms is a game with existing pipes and wires. In order to achieve maximum floor height, the original concrete is exposed nakedly. No louver can be found within the entire building as they all hide within the gaps between materials. 

There are a few surprising setups in the hotel: a mirror periscope window in the darkest room reflecting the exterior landscape; little openings in the courtyards where can handshake with neighbors; strip windows people can peek at the bar and bridge, etc. The Whole building is like a installation, which encourage eye contacts, and social interaction.