Flowing Cloud Township Villa Ugostiteljstvo

Press Kit

Unique Properties

Flowing Cloud Township Villa is located in Qinglongwu，a centennial village in Tonglu County,Hangzhou,which is composed of 4 ancestral houses of different ages and 2 new buildings.
MDO will created a new rural retreat which celebrates local culture and tradition through the sensitive renovation of the old structures, using local techniques, materials and craftsmen.

Dimensions & Packaging

Area:1300 Square meters

Tags

Rural Regen,Modern,Architectural Design,Sypmathetic renovation,Local craftsmen, Local technique, Interior,Commercial, Simple, Natural,Art

Production Technology

Main structure：Rammed earth, Reinforced concrete
Materials：Reclaimed timber, reclaimed roof tiles,rammed earth, glass and steel

Design Challenge

The design process concerned how to maintain this patina of history, whilst carefully updating the buildings to be fit more modern use. MDO call this approach ‘sensitive renovation’, where we respect the existing structure but can still be brave in balancing the old and the new.

In nature, architecture is a foreign object which is inserted in a natural environment. So there are two possible ways to develop, one is to make the architecture integrate into its new environment, with materials, with its form, so that it blends with nature. An alternative is to treat it as ‘a visitor’, a foreign object which is deliberately in contrast with its surroundings.

Research

The architecture and space of Flowing Cloud Township Villa are technical products of local crafts and culture.

Tonglu offers the visitor a unique experience different from a traditional luxury hotel. Here we can have a closer connection to nature, to be able to relax and unwind, free from the distractions of modern life. To see local tradition, to taste local foods. It’s about sharing the local tradition and passing them on to the next generation.

MDO think that if in the future the homestay changes and becomes a village again, then we have helped modernize the village, but in a sympathetic way which respects the old. MDO hope that this type of sympathetic renovation can be a model for other villages.

Inspiration

MDO want visitors will be able to experience an environment in touch with the nature, a chance to disconnect from their busy urban lives. The retreat will offer new employment opportunities for local people, allowing them to share their rich cultural heritage.

The existing structures of rammed earth walls, historical windows and doors are all retained and refurbished. New elements are treated as modern insertions allowing guests to clearly read the relationship between the old and the new.

Project Duration

The project started in Qinglongwu,Tonglu County,Hangzhou in June 2017 and finished in June 2021.

Operation Flow

The dilapidated roofs were restored and lifted to create more usually ceiling heights. A clerestory window was formed around the edge, allowing diffused light to penetrate the depths of the space, and guests can see the bamboo forest from any angle in the room.

The existing gloomy interiors were brightened by adding New metal frame windows into the walls following the haphazard patten of the existing timber windows. The design carefully considered the location of the new windows so the outside landscape is framed like paintings for the guests to enjoy from inside.
Two new buildings were created on the foundations of a collapsed structure and establish a new dialogue with the countryside and nature.

The surface of the new buildings are rough concrete. The concrete is allowed to weather, so that overtime they will be integrated into the landscape blurring the boundary between architecture and nature. The rough facade contrasts with the crisp windows which frame the softer, warmer interiors.

Image Credits

All materials on the site belong to More Design Office Co.,Ltd