Chinoise chic

Framed by willow trees and perfectly rounded, carved stone bridges, picturesque canals characterise the ancient town of Zhouzhuang, 50 kilometers from Shanghai. Here, time seems to stand still, and life has remained the same for centuries: villagers still wash clothes in the waterways and gather over tea under the graceful upturned eaves of its classical Ming and Qing dynasty courtyards.

When the local government and developers from Blossom Hill Inn jointly called for a competition to design a boutique hotel that captures the town’s spirit, Shanghai-based firm Dariel Studio found the perfect blend of romanticism and history in the Chinese agricultural calendar, the inspiration behind their winning design concept. The traditional solar-based calendar, which divides the year into 24 periods reflecting changes in climate is still commonly used in the countryside today, guiding farmers on when best to conduct activities such as planting and harvesting crops. “I happened to be reading about it in a book on Chinese history and found it interesting and appropriate—each ‘moment’ could be defined by different colours, materials and styles,” shares founder and lead designer Thomas Dariel.

Excerpt from the September issue of epicure.