Seeking Tranquility
“A Woodwork Enthusiast’s House”
Xiamen, Fujian, China
Designed by ZMY Design
(Completed March 2019)
“I think interior design has three levels. The first level is merely about putting items together, about homogeneous consumption intervened by commerce, while the second level is about satisfying sensory experiences, via incorporating creativity, cultural context, historical stories and classy taste. But the highest level, I mean the best design, pursues to serve the mind. It’s austere yet profound, simple yet lasting, and is able to put the body and mind in a comfortable state.”
- ZMY Design
This beautifully serene three-story home was built in an abandoned cement factory in Xiamen, China. I love the idea of adaptive reuse like this. Buildings carry so much memory, and rather than trying to erase that memory, you thankfully see architects and designers reconceptualising those spaces for new use. Instead of obliterating what went before, some attempt is made to keep a sense of continuity and history in their design choices (which can admittedly feel gimmicky if not well executed). Too often here in London it seems like buildings are repurposed with no other thought than how to carve out as much money as possible for investors. You end up with ridiculously cramped and poorly thought out flats, with no consideration of the well-being of the people who might be lucky enough to call that space home.
As always I frame things through my view of fashion. When it comes to clothing I think a lot about sensory and emotional experience. I am fascinated by the experience of the individual and how clothing can be used to enhance well-being and sense of personhood. I am hardly alone in this, and thankfully designers in multiple creative fields talk openly about how these factors inform their decisions. Speaking of this project, ZMY Design explained that home “is the most intimate place for us, which needn’t carry the complex expectations from the outside world. It provides a tranquil environment that liberates both the body and mind, and a place to let emotions take root.”
A tranquil environment that liberates both the body and mind. That sounds beautiful to me, and it is something I wish we could all experience. Liberation speaks to freedom, and freedom here is framed through an earthy materiality that feels warm and alive to me. I know Brutalist fans love them some cement and concrete, but I need a natural touch to feel at home. I need that warmth. This home has a considered combination of both. The original cement ceilings are left intact, while oakwood floorboards create a warm base. To be honest I picture this combination in terms of a perfume pyramid, with a dusty cement opening, leather and quince mid notes, and then that beautiful oak as the base; all perfused with hazy light and shadow like a powdery perfume cloud.
The walls of the central living space were finished with a combination of shell powder and earth mixed by the designer himself as a nod to the “austere character” of traditional Chinese villages. This might sound odd, but I love walls where you can see the trace of human touch - whether that be brush strokes or any other subtle sign of irregularity (and I mean subtle, unless it is an explicit design choice, because sloppy work is hardly charming). It gives character and I like to bear witness to the fact that people and their labour were involved in the making of things.
Home is where we leave behind the outside world. But we carry memories with us no matter where we go, just as all of our material possessions do. I love the idea of having a serene, almost monastic home, in which to allow those memories and emotions to flow.
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