Bronze Interior Space and Exhibition Design · 2025
No Know Interior Design
by Rong Han
- A' Design Award 2025 Bronze Winner in Interior Space and Exhibition Design
- Awarded April 15, 2025
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 8,845
- Verification code AC85601D05 · Verify this award
About No Know Interior Design
No Know is a script murder escape room located on the second basement level of a shopping district in Xi'an, China. The venue covers 1080 square metres and contains ten themed rooms, including Republican, Chinese, futuristic and minimalist styles. Many elements are left unfinished, and some walls remain in their post-demolition state, with exposed surfaces and simple stucco finishes. The original staircase was retained as a focal point of the public area. Aisles are 1.2 metres wide, so players pass each other closely and social encounters are encouraged.
No Know Interior Design by Rong Han engages the rich lineage of post-industrial spatial transformation, situating itself within design traditions that celebrate the tectonic vocabulary of commercial and manufacturing architecture while reinterpreting such structures for contemporary cultural and social purposes. The work demonstrates considerable compositional sophistication through its carefully calibrated balance between chromatic restraint and strategic punctuation, where the saturated crimson counter functions simultaneously as functional furniture, spatial organizer, chromatic event, and symbolic gesture within an otherwise rigorously neutral environment. This disciplined palette suggests affinities with minimalist spatial strategies and the pared-down material vocabularies characteristic of contemporary design movements that privilege essential forms, honest materials, and spatial clarity over decorative elaboration. The designer's technical achievement becomes evident in the precise handling of scale relationships, where the elongated horizontal counter establishes human-scaled interaction zones within the larger volume while the preserved industrial infrastructure maintains a sense of structural grandeur and spatial generosity. The exposed ceiling systems, rather than representing incomplete construction or budgetary limitation, function as deliberate design elements that reference authenticity, material transparency, and industrial heritage, contributing to a spatial narrative about transformation and adaptive possibility. The integration of varied programmatic elements including display shelving, communal seating, and branded environmental graphics suggests the space serves multiple overlapping functions potentially encompassing retail experience, cultural exhibition, social gathering, and collaborative workspace, reflecting contemporary spatial design's movement toward hybrid programming and flexible functionality. The lighting design demonstrates particular subtlety in its layered approach, combining ambient low-level illumination that preserves atmospheric depth and shadow with focused accent lighting that creates hierarchical emphasis and guides attention through the spatial sequence. The furnishing vocabulary employing wireframe seating and minimalist display systems maintains visual lightness and permeability, preventing the insertion of contemporary elements from overwhelming the architectural container or obscuring the carefully composed sight lines. Thematically, the environment invites contemplation of boundaries between public and private, commercial and cultural, functional and experiential, suggesting that contemporary spatial design increasingly resists categorical definition in favor of hybrid identities that accommodate multiple modes of occupancy and interpretation. The typography establishing brand identity through understated dimensional lettering suggests confidence in minimal gesture and spatial integration rather than assertive signage, reflecting design sensibilities that value sophistication, subtlety, and environmental coherence. How might such carefully composed environments shape human interaction and experience, and what possibilities emerge when spatial design itself becomes a form of cultural communication and aesthetic proposition?
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- No Know is a script murder escape room situated on the second basement level of the Yongningli Shopping District in Xi'an. True to its name, the design purposefully incorporates many unfinished elements, with some walls left in their post-demolition state. This approach creates an atmosphere similar to an ongoing creative process, allowing players to experience distinct spatial sensations at different stages.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- 1080 square metre
- Tags
- Script Murder Game, Escape Room, Mystery, Immersive, Emergent Gameplay, User Experience
- Production Technology
- The venue features ten room themes including Republican, Chinese, futuristic, and minimalist Ins styles. Rather than employing intricate techniques, the project embraces simplicity by preserving aspects of the original structure, such as exposed walls and basic stucco finishes. This choice encourages players to intuitively engage with the mystery and authentic texture of the space. The roughly painted plaster walls, when illuminated by specific lighting, become particularly captivating.
- Design Challenge
- A great challenge in the design process is that the designer must possess experience in the script murder game and know its rules well prior to commencing the project. These elements are essential to the design. In this instance, the designer is an enthusiastic player, which has allowed him to seamlessly incorporate the game rules and concepts into the spatial design.
- Project Duration
- The project commenced in April 2020 and wrapped up in November 2021 at a site in Xi'an, China. It officially opened to the public in November of the same year.
- Operation Flow
- The conventional front desk area features a long table that remains in an unfinished state, evoking a sense of mystery. Positioned centrally within the public space, it meets the needs of players who wish to gather and converse while waiting. The design promotes social interaction, similar to the room aisles, which are designed to be only 1.2 meters wide. This narrowness compels individuals to pass in a staggered manner, creating opportunities for unexpectedly delightful encounters.
- Research
- During the demolition process, the original staircase connecting the basement and second floors was retained, becoming a focal point in the public area and the most dynamic feature of the entire space. This staircase serves as a unique element, allowing the overall environment to achieve a sense of elevation. In its unfinished form, the old staircase contributes to the space in a distinctive manner.
- Inspiration
- The appeal of design often arises from an element of unexpected uncertainty. Reflecting on the Buddhist adage, Free from the notions of I, others, living beings, and time,these four no notions do not dismiss existence; rather, they highlight the significance of looking beyond superficial appearances to uncover deeper truths. This concept aligns with the essence of the script murder game that inspired the design of No Know.
- Image Credits
- Shanxi Shanye Architectural Design Co., Ltd
- Patents
- Shanxi Shanye Architectural Design Co., Ltd