Uketamo Design d'intérieur hôtelier by Chris Yj Chen

Uketamo Design d'intérieur hôtelier by Chris Yj Chen is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 A' Design Award de Bronze in Design d'Intérieur Competition Category.

BronzeIntérieur· 2026

Uketamo Design d'intérieur hôtelier

by Chris Yj Chen

Client: Chris YJ Chen

A' Design Award de Bronze Winner in Intérieur Category

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The Design

About Uketamo Design d'intérieur hôtelier

Uketamo est un aménagement intérieur d'hôtel situé dans le district de Da'an, à Taipei (Taïwan). Le projet transforme l'idée d'acceptation en un parcours spatial. Un escalier central relie les halls de trois étages, qui représentent le passé, le présent et l'avenir. L'escalier repose sur une structure en acier habillée de carrelage italien, tandis que les murs reçoivent un enduit minéral appliqué à la main, à la texture terreuse. Une tapisserie touffetée à la main de sept mètres de long passe d'un indigo profond à un bleu pâle. Les surfaces s'éclaircissent à mesure que les hôtes montent, menant de la densité urbaine vers la quiétude.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award de Bronze

Uketamo Design d'intérieur hôtelier est lauréat de l'A' Design Award de Bronze, une reconnaissance hautement prestigieuse décernée à des designs remarquables qui se distinguent par leur créativité, leur ingéniosité et leur sagacité. Les lauréats Bronze sont des artefacts amplement habiles et d'une créativité frappante, qui authentifient la vaste expérience, l'imagination et l'ingéniosité de leurs concepteurs. Uketamo Design d'intérieur hôtelier est censé être un objet très estimé, admiré et chéri, remarquablement professionnel et innovant. Ce design lauréat de l'A' Design Award de Bronze intègre les meilleures pratiques de l'art, de la science, du design et de la technologie, et est excellent par son souci du détail. Uketamo Design d'intérieur hôtelier satisfait admirablement les besoins, touche les désirs, charme les sentiments et attire la curiosité.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: By reinterpreting this ancient pilgrimage within a contemporary urban void, the designer crafted a 'Staircase of Time'. This ritualistic path invites travelers to embark on a meditative ascent that strips away the city's noise, allowing the soul to progress through a profound spiritual realignment. As guests traverse the levels, they move beyond the physical structure to experience a state of rebirth, ultimately restoring the spirit to its primal 'Zero' state.
Dimensions & Packaging: The central wall features a monumental 7 meter long tapestry by Yamagata Dantsu, a workshop founded in 1935. This bespoke textile was meticulously crafted over six months, integrating traditional thread cultivation, custom dyeing, and expert hand-tufting by skilled artisans. This ensures a seamless gradient transition from deep indigo to the ethereal pale blue-white of dawn light.
Tags: Hotel,Uketamo,Hotel Uketamo,Taiwan,Paradox Studio,Yamagata
Production Technology: The staircase is constructed with a structural steel frame clad in Italian tile. The surrounding walls are finished with ONE DUST Colorwash Extra, a premium mineral-based coating. This mineral paint is applied using a hand-layered technique to achieve a monolithic, earthy texture that evokes a mountain path.
Design Challenge: The primary challenge was translating the metaphysical 'Uketamo' philosophy into a tangible architectural experience within a constrained urban footprint. It required balancing physical materiality with a spiritual narrative through three key strategies:

1. Cultivating Acceptance through Movement:
One of the greatest challenges was designing the vertical circulation to facilitate a state of total acceptance (Uketamo). The goal was to create a space that could instinctively quiet the mind; by manipulating spatial volume and rhythm, the design transformed the act of climbing into a meditative process, allowing guests to unconditionally embrace the transition from urban chaos to inner stillness.

2. Metaphorical Translation: Synthesizing the "Three Mountains of Dewa" required precise control over material density. The designer overcame this by engineering a vertical sensory shift: moving from heavy, grounded textures on the lower floors to ethereal, light-driven surfaces at the peak, ensuring the spiritual timeline was perceptible through touch and sight.
3. Interactive Sightlines: We conducted a rigorous sightline analysis to align the staircase's open-riser structure with the monumental 'Yamago Agu' (looking up to the sacred mountain) tapestry. This ensured that the transition from a "look-up" (awe) to an "overlook" (clarity) perspective remained perfectly synchronized with the guest's physical ascent, successfully turning a functional transit void into a ritualistic, cinematic journey.
Research: The Trilogy of Life: The Arboreal Journey
The central staircase acts as the architectural sapwood, vertically interconnecting the 4th, 5th, and 6th-floor lobbies into a living allegory of a tree’s growth and spiritual evolution. The design maps the "Roots-Branches-Leaves" sequence onto a temporal timeline, creating a cohesive narrative arc where movement through space mirrors the journey of life.
4F: Solid Roots (The Past). Representing the foundation of being, the design language is grounded and tactile. Heavier textures and structural honesty evoke the stability of ancient roots deep within the mountain soil.
5F: Layered Branches (The Present). The main arrival point mimics the complexity of interlocking branches. Here, social interaction and functional layers intersect, capturing the vibrant, active energy of the canopy.
6F: Ethereal Leaves & Water Shadows (The Future). As the staircase reaches its peak, lightness defines the atmosphere. Sunlight filters through high windows, creating an effect of "leaves falling onto water shadows," symbolizing spiritual transcendence and rebirth.
Through this Vertical Connectivity, the architecture physically "lightens" as guests ascend. By transitioning from the density of the roots to the transparency of the sky, the design facilitates a profound Sensory Transformation, guiding the observer toward the ultimate state of Uketamo (Unconditionally Acceptance).
Inspiration: In the heart of Taipei Daan District, HOTEL UKETAMO explores the urban sanctuary through the lens of Japanese philosophy: Uketamo, a state of acceptance.
The project reimagined the traditional lobby and circulation into a 'Vertical Pilgrimage' rooted in the spiritual heritage of the Yamabushi monks from the Three Sacred Mountains of Dewa. Each level of this architectural intervention mirrors the sacred peaks' symbolism of existence: the Past, the Present, and the Future.
Project Duration: Completed in August 2025. Taipei, Taiwan.
Operation Flow: The center staircase is a vertical 'Cosmic Axis' bridging the celestial and the terrestrial, guided by the principle of 'As above, so below.' The Zenith, symbolizing the Origin of the Universe, acts as a spiritual 'Sun' cascading light like shimmering dewdrops. This light is captured at the base by a reflective 'Mirror Moon,' forming a Complete Circle that embodies the spiritual cycle of the Three Sacred Mountains of Dewa. This infinite resonance between the Past, Present, and Future suggests that the vastness of the universe and the reincarnation of life are both held within the stillness of the self. Within this axis, the staircase serves as a cinematic platform for the monumental tapestry, 'Yama o Aogu' specially commissioned from the renowned Yamagata Dantsu team. As guests traverse the levels, their vision evolves through a shifting perspective: from a humble look-up (awe) at the mountain's roots to a clear overlook (clarity) at its peak. This movement, echoing the transition from dawn to dusk, reflects an internal evolution, positing that the 'angle of the heart' ultimately determines how one perceives the mountain of life.
Team Members: Design Director: Chris YJ Chen
Architect: TC Kuo
Designer: Emma Hsu
Image Credits: Photographer: Andrew Kan