Shijiazhuang City, Hebei Province

The Existence of a City Depends on Memory

By naming the project in Chinese after the “Nanjing Brocade” –a traditional article famous for its cloud-like colors and intricate patterns, China Overseas Land & Investment pays homage to the heritage of a city, the place where the best fabrics in the country are produced: the “Fifth Cotton Mill”.

The mill has been a part of Chinese culture for generations, it is the prime example of how space can become a symbolic memory. Such is the connection between the mill, the city and society, a dialogue between architecture, space and people.

The space feels as if the designer had arranged a carrier inside a glass box to generate fluid forms and dynamic sculptures resembling the sinuous shapes of the Nanjing brocade or extensive sand dunes that transform time into organic musical patterns.

In Art, Past and Present Overlap while the Old and the New Establish a Unique Dialogue.

The designer takes elements from nature and memory and twists them into threads that weave an architectural brocade, using flexible curves to provide artistic tension to the surrounding environment, combining memories with physical space.

Memories materialize before our eyes as if weaved with fine silk threads. Countless flying yarns condense day and night into a winged sculpture, a threader moving swiftly between giant ribbons in space.

A fifty-two-meter-long and nine-meter-wide sculpture rises toward the sky and extends through the whole interior space of the property. Inspiration for the piece comes from Chinese brocade, revolving and dancing around, both intertwined and scattered at the same time, outlining the shape of an infinite loop, aiming toward the future.

“We highlight the cultural features of the cotton industry in China, using space as the carrier that connects the past with the future, through a dynamic momentum that outlines the beauty of life in bloom with unique elements from the past and formidable sights of the future”. – said the designer.

“Time” is the Essence behind Brilliant Prospect

The designer adopted a unique artistic language to define Brilliant Prospect –the project’s name in English. Such creative approach defines a distinctive landmark, composed of artistic and cultural elements.

And thus, sinuous curves grow around the space, weaving segments of time into particular groups, orchestrating multiple ideas into one. Like an epic opera, its magnificent forms fascinate people with a distinctive charm.

Unlock your Imagination, Open your Mind to a Brilliant Prospect

Complementing the main sculpture, an artistic staircase becomes the symbolic entrance to a time tunnel that distributes imaginative elements above and below ground. At the center of two sculptural curved stairs lies an installation called the “Time Shuttle”.

The designer sets the main functional zone of the property in a sunken courtyard where mirrored areas vast as the skies and lakes provide a deep depth of field, separating everything inside the property from the complexities of the external world. The salon area opposite to the book bar interprets the convergence of time with geometric shapes.

The whole space is bestowed with church-like sacredness and tranquility. It cultivates a life of elegance with poetry, wine, flowers and tea; gathering the essence of life through elements such as rhythm, softness and comfortable surroundings to enjoy the company of old and new friends.

The clubhouse is an extension of the household, a unique kind of companionship that further refines and integrates social circles. Once again, the “spindle” becomes the main artistic symbol of the space. This time, the shape hangs down from the ceiling, concentrating the light coming from a surrounding “ocean of knowledge”.

Thus, the designer transforms space into a petri dish of curiosity and creativity, awaking memories and shaping them. The space feels like a “dance frozen in time” about to begin again, prompting a breathtaking melody that transforms objects into lively and meaningful beings.

The designer hopes to create an artistic “choreography” between real and imaginary times, providing guests with endless possibilities from the future, in a banquet, meeting or party in modern times.

Project info

Project name: Brilliant Prospect

Project status: Completed

Location: Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, China

Developer: China Overseas Land and Investment

Contractor: Beijing Mingyang Hanhai Decoration LLC.

Design team: GBD

Lead designer: Du Wenbiao (Bill Do)

Interior design: Guangzhou GBD Design

Completion: September, 2020

Project area: approximately 2000m2

Main Materials: Terrazzo, Faux paint, Metal paint

Photographer: BenMo Studio