With China in mid-middle-class boom, the mainland’s tier two (and below) cities are suddenly finding themselves having to cater to the needs of high-maintenance young professionals. Zhuhai, a 1.5 million-strong city on Guangdong’s southeast coast, is no exception.
Spearheading its way into yuppiedom is Shizimen, the city’s fast-developing central business district, which also boasts a sizeable residential element. The challenge, though, has been to meet the expectations of a new generation of high-earners, many of whom expect luxury to come as standard.
Thankfully, the embryonic CBD had something of a secret weapon in hand – Wilson Associates, the award-winning, global design group. More specifically, it took on the services of Design Director Aldwin Ong, who’s previously best known for his work on such architectural gems as the New World Beijing Hotel, Lotte Hotel Seoul and Sofitel Nusa Dua.
Under Ong’s stewardship, these three distinctly upmarket Shizimen apartments have been built to spec, but to a spec intended to entice even the most sophisticated of the city’s residents. Commissioned by Huafa, the local real estate, financial services and trading conglomerate, the smallest of Ong’s Zhuhai-based projects is Tech New York. A one-bedroom apartment designed for young professionals who are already tasting success, embedding cutting-edge technology was one of the key design precepts.
Ong was also keen to turn the relatively compact size of the apartment into an advantage, using indirect lighting, combined with a blend of polished and exposed surfaces, to create a surprisingly spacious-looking interior, with splashes of brightly-coloured glass acting as an effective counterpoint to the muted grey stonework. The furnishings, of course, are note perfect for the sleek, modern interior, including wardrobes that manage to be both minimalistic and futuristic.
A little larger and with ample room for two bedrooms is Luxe London. This 63 sq.m apartment boasts chic cream walls, with its bare timber flooring perfectly framing an array of signature furniture items. The sleep space up-lights, meanwhile, all throw enchanting haloes around an eclectic selection of wall art, while the free-standing lamps elsewhere in the home are a creative statement in their own right. Such quirky touches as Luxe London’s concave ceiling, an indulgence that notably adds to the headroom in the already commodious living space, are a testimony to the designer’s love of anachronistic designs.
Impressive as Luxe London certainly is, it pales a little in comparison to Parisian Art, undoubtedly Ong’s Zhuhai masterpiece. This sumptuous three-bedroom apartment is just about perfect for any young, aspirational family in search of a high-concept, high-status home. Robustly elegant without ever stooping to excess or needless ostentation, this was clearly a labour of love for the designer.
Here too, Ong’s principle was to create several distinct feature elements and then allow the apartment to coalesce around them. It’s an approach that is apparent throughout – from the white stone floor, fetchingly crossed with stylishly irregular black lines, to the judiciously distributed contemporary art prints, all of which seem to organically segue into the master soft-grey / monochrome colour scheme.
He also knows just when to throttle back on the chillier undertones of his chosen palette, artfully imposing gold accents in unexpected nooks. While, under less sure tutelage, such provocatively bold elements could teeter toward the gauche, Ong’s eye for the minutest detail sees them remain delightfully avant-garde, but never preposterous.
While visual chicanery can often artfully mask a workaday blemish or two, this is not the case with Parisian Art. Even the brash utilitarianism of the air-conditioning paraphernalia is beautifully burnished, transforming it from eyesore to eye-draw.
It’s a compliment to say that uncovering such dextrous decor in downtown Zhuhai is a little startling. It’s more of a compliment, still, to concede that, rather than twinkling like a slurry-mounted gem, its halo effect has seeped into its immediate surroundings, bestowing a kind of gifted grandeur. It’s both a mark of the progress made locally in this glistening business-hub-to-be and a bold statement of intent from a city that’s set to tear up the tier rankings.
Text: Alice Duncan
Images: Wilson Associates