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Taoxichuan Hotel Unbound Collection by Hyatt

AIM Architecture

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Reception - Wen Studio
Lobby overview - Wen Studio
Lobby - Wen Studio
Reception - Wen Studio

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Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
JURY VOTES
Hotel
8.03
7.64
8.32
7.24
7.81
Ad de Hond
Ad de Hond Founder and Creative Director at ADH.design
Nice to see how the brief was inter...
8.06
8.03
8.33
7.88
8.08
Catalina Soffia Baeza
Catalina Soffia Baeza Creative Director at Yáneken
8.84
8.34
9.03
9.03
8.81
Darren Xu
Darren Xu Founder and CEO at Spider Creative
8.56
7.73
8.06
7.81
8.04
Asha Sairam
Asha Sairam Principal at Studio Lotus
Lovely how the context of the locat...
8.5
8.5
8.75
7
8.19
Philip Staszewski
Philip Staszewski Partner Architect at Ivy Studio
Great use of materials all around....
8
8
8.5
8
8.13
Simon Schmolling
Simon Schmolling Head of Architecture at Meiré und Meiré
8.09
8.38
8.57
7.51
8.14
Mauro Brigham
Mauro Brigham Founder and Creative Director at ncbham
7.75
7.5
8
7
7.56
Daniel Kaven
Daniel Kaven Co-Founder at William Kaven Architecture
The best hotels I have been in all...
6.57
4.04
5.76
4.19
5.14
Mark Bithrey
Mark Bithrey Founder and Creative Director at B3 Designers
8
7.5
9
7.5
8
Andrew Martin
Andrew Martin Founder and Creative Director at AMD Interior Architecture
Beautifully excited, well thought t...
8
7.5
10
6
7.88
Pengzhan Du
Pengzhan Du Chief Architect at Engineering Design Management Center of Bureau of public works of Shenzhen Municipality
8.5
8
8.5
7
8
Zhongli Wang
Zhongli Wang Partner at Catanian
7.57
7.61
7.87
7.7
7.69
Steve Lastro
Steve Lastro CEO and Future of Living Advisor at Linq-X
7.5
8
8
7
7.63
Lindsay Roth
Lindsay Roth Design Director at Gensler
8
7
8
7
7.5
Katie Kasabalis
Katie Kasabalis Cofounder at Kasawoo
I enjoyed seeing all the different...
8.5
8.5
8.5
8
8.38
Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
GRAND JURY VOTES
Shortlisted - Hotel of the Year
8.03
7.64
8.32
7.24
7.81
Emma Maxwell
Emma Maxwell Founder at Emma Maxwell Design
8.03
7.64
8.32
7.24
7.81
Rosha Ehsan
Rosha Ehsan Head of Design at Gastronomica Middle East
8.03
7.64
8.32
7.24
7.81
Jason Steere
Jason Steere MD Brand & Experience at The Social Hub
8.03
7.64
8.32
7.24
7.81
Christophe Penasse
Christophe Penasse Cofounder at Masquespacio
8.03
7.64
8.32
7.24
7.81
Mark Bithrey
Mark Bithrey Founder and Creative Director at B3 Designers
Cold. Rooms are beautiful...
8.03
7.64
8.32
7.24
7.81
Client
Jingdezhen Taoyi Cultural Development
Floor area
25000 ㎡
Completion
2021
Furniture

The Power of porcelain

Jingdezhen, in Northeastern Jiangxi, is the porcelain capital of the world. For over 1,000 years, it served emperors of all dynasties, and its finest creations heralded as the cream of the East. It’s the origin of porcelain, and with that, like a road stretched out ahead, a whole new world opens. The hotel is set in phase 2 of Taoxichuan, the Art & Tourism development in the heart of Jingdezhen, the project celebrates all things ceramic in a one-of-a-kind hotel, The Unbound Collection by Hyatt.

The project, named “The Road of a Fascination,” is a story of a journey: Like the long and fascinating life of porcelain, a journey toward the unknown, the unexpected, an urge to find the truth, and all the encounters in between.

The physical spaces are divided by themes that feature the porcelain journey from China’s origin, eventually spread and influence in the broader world, and return to its native home. The different spaces are the ORIGIN-Lobby, the CREATION-Lounge, the DISCOVERY-Ballroom, the FASCINATION-All Day Dining, the APPECIATION-SPA & Pool, and the RETURN-Guestrooms.

Each space explores and uses ceramic differently, pulling out different colors and textures. Each area is a piece of the journey. The project seeks to unite raw and refinement, turning ceramics into architecture, interior, furniture, and patterns.

Its contemporary brick architecture was designed by David Chipperfield’s studio and consists of three courtyard blocks connected by a generous interior street. AIM’s approach towards the interiors was first to ‘finish the architecture’: extending the brick facades of the exterior to the interiors, thereby using the architecture instead of replacing it.

Our second move was to dedicate each of the three volumes to one technique. The lounge uses green Celadon glazing. The restaurant and spa are committed to the methods of using cobalt for blue coloring. The meeting and ballroom are all about the lightness and transparency of porcelain. To move through the hotel is to move through different techniques of porcelain. An array of marble in a standard hotel is transformed here to a kaleidoscope of skill and technique.

The centerpiece in the connecting street is inspired by the fire kilns that bake the porcelain—Black, a landscape of platforms to put art to be or art that has become. Roof lights evoke the powerful heat of the kilns.

The guest areas are more subtle and grounded. Called Ateliers, they are places for guests to return to, retreat, and refresh among the unglazed and more workshop-like textures, “benches” and shelves. Clay tones dominate, and canvas walls create solitude and opportunities for encounters with material and uniqueness.

In conclusion, the hotel is a tribute to the technique and experience of porcelain in the heart of its birthplace. Here, ceramic is commemorated in a way it has never been, expressing both as an honest material and exploring its versatility and power in interior design.