la maison xun by LDH design

‘la maison xun’ reimagines the tranquility of old beijing

nestled in a courtyard in beijing’s beilucaoyuan hutong, ‘la maison xun’ opens quietly for business. unlike most high-end dining spaces, this chinese restaurant completed by studio LDH design merges a modern art interior with a more traditional exterior. in a world buzzing with ‘noisy’ aesthetics, lead designer daohua liu insisted on celebrating the antique and highlighting a respect for history and nature by carving out a captivating yet calming experience where guests can retrace old beijing and its courtyards in memory.

all images © ting wang, SensoryDesign

traditional chinese culture against a subtle, modern backdrop

when visitors push open the restaurant’s red gate and walk into the courtyard, their attention is immediately drawn to traditional chinese elements such as grey tiles, wooden eaves, black walls, and ancient trees, all evoking beijing’s golden years. this historic, tranquil, and elegant display is considered a bonus to the gourmet trip at ‘la maison xun’. liu (see more here) further states: ‘this restaurant is not a top-level or high-end chamber, but a landscape that can restore the original state of beijing.’

once inside the main dining room, guests can catch the subtle overtaking of eastern design against a discrete western-style backdrop. to create that impression, liu collaborated with the restaurant’s co-owners, who helped her integrate some of china’s finest original furniture and artworks. as such, the team brought in furniture brand maxmarko and artist zhang zhanzan to populate the space with refreshing elements, including the ‘pupu bear’ that greets visitors at the red gate.

‘while enjoying the delicious food, guests can feel the calmness and peace endowed by traditional culture, the historical bearing of the old beijing courtyard, and the artistic atmosphere emitted by modern aesthetics. the combination of the new and the old, the collision of tradition and fashion, and the integration of modern aesthetics and vivid oriental artistic conception, are the new trend of contemporary art and the best extension of courtyard life,’ concludes LDH design.

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project info:

name: la maison xun

architecture: LDH design

total area: 500 sqm

location: beilucaoyuan hutong, dongcheng district, beijing, china

design team: daohua liu, qianyuan cheng, youzhe li, lei li

completion date: october 2020
furniture brand: maxmarko

furniture consultant: chen darui

artworks: ArtDepot

lighting consultant: beijing guangshe lighting design co., ltd.

floral & plant design: cohim flower school

video: beijing XY brand consulting co., ltd.

photography: wang ting, SensoryDesign

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