the wheat youth arts hotel is located in the binjiang district — hangzhou — of china, and within the ‘avenue of stars trade’ area. designed studio x+ living, the project caters for young spirits and reflects the striking contemporary lifestyle of the city. 

 

‘the goal is to design a hotel which itself will flirt with tourists, and a place welcomes tourists to tease at each other’, explains the designer.

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
personified words are displayed all along in sight, playfully interacting with guests
(above and main) image © shao feng

 

 

the entry is not eye-catching — given how it is located inside a shopping mall. upon approaching, two simple words ‘mai jian (wheat)’ could be seen on the small, simple white door of the hotel. x+living creates a small lobby at the entrance; guests need to go through it to reach the hall. at the end of the lobby, instead of using decorations, a vertical display of all guest room supplies is installed; items are painted white and sealed with glass to form a showcase. on the exterior, one can read the word “hallo” in orange-yellow. this peculiar display makes people feel like that all items in the guest room have gathered  to welcome future guests.


 x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
li xiang wants to use simple furniture to create concise space
 image © shao feng

 

 

the designer uses music, painting and reading — which are cherished by people in daily life–  to add an intimate touch to the hotel atmosphere. a piano can be found in the corridor of every floor, allowing guests to amuse themselves and share the charm of music –making it a tool for silent communication between strangers. she also uses chinese checkers to describe people by decorating a map of the world on one of the entrance walls –which carries a message that the hotel welcomes friends from all over the world. this approach is also employed to represent the service personnel of the hotel, thus chinese checkers are designed like stools — sitting on them makes guests feel like they are being served.

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
the function and aesthetics of the furniture combine with each other in a coherent manner
image © shao feng

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
entering the the lobby, the space looks like a study and a living room
image © shao feng

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
the dog in front of the bar is like a hospitable steward who welcomes the guests on behalf of the host
image © shao feng

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
image © shao feng

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
the design of the corridor is concise, simple, and  powerful
image © shao feng

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
guests are greeted by the word ‘wheat’ at the entrance door
image © shao feng

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
image © shao feng

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
on the ceiling, seven small figures fall from the sky –carrying parachutes
image © shao feng

x+ living wheat youth arts hotel china designboom
designer director  li xiang

 

 

project info:

design director: li xiang
design team: fan chen, chen dan, wu feng, zhang xiao, ren li-jiao
design company: x+living
address: no. 9, tai’an road, binjiang district, hangzhou, zhejiang, china
area: 4500 sqm

 

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

 

edited by: lea zeitoun | designboom