Located near world Heritage site ‘Ŏu Yuán, Couple's Retreat Garden, T. K. Chu has designed an elegant home built around a courtyard; the theme of serenity is consistent between the courtyard and the interior through the sliding glass doors, which open to a limpid pool and a Zen garden where the bamboo and grass release a refreshing aroma to the interior after a short spell of rain.
T.K. Chu Design’s subtle ‘duality’ design has resulted in the project outwardly bearing a naturalistic artistry, and inwardly a simplistic modernity. It comes in a form of verticality and linearity, angularity and irregularity; the marbles being finely cut, the hallway being replete with geometric expressions, the rocks and trees boasting their untrimmed appearance; the duality is unified within the residence but divided by the windows.
The designer grounded the design on a strong form of externalisation of traditional Chinese philosophies. Full height windows connect with the outdoors, scattering light in to illuminate the space. The consistency of neutral tones flows throughout the main level.
The staircase is more like a vertical meandering sculpture leading upwards to the privacy of the dwellers. Underneath the main level, there hides an artful sculpture, ‘Coupling’ by PoLin Yang, in the hub of the pavilion with timber-framed grids standing guard over it; its silhouette remains true to the intimacy and interdependence of dual elements.
The designer aimed to modernise the space through abstraction; a whiskey bar is a fixture in the boutique hotel, showcasing the inhabitant’s high class and the liveliness aspects allows dwellers to detach from work-life.