The project is located in the old Donggu Village among the mountains. There used to be an abandoned cement factory on the site. After two years of research and communication, our client and the government together proposed an exciting renewal plan, that is, to build an ecological rural cultural resort. The ground level of the building is a LOOP public space gently rising from the fields. To serve the whole town, it accommodates a visitor center, a folk culture hall, a nature experience class, a traditional handicraft workshop, a local food bistro, an original art gallery, a mineral spring pool, etc. The upper level is a mini town consisting of 68 living units with a panoramic view of the surrounding landscape. In the center is a garden with forking paths featuring local wild plants and raw materials.

According to the landscape resources in different directions, we have adopted different design strategies. Facing the large rice field on the east side, there is a group of vault villas. After a rain, you can easily take a walk on the ridge, or just relax in the outdoor bathtub and enjoy the changing seasons. On the west side, towards the river and mountains, there is a series of flat suites with private courtyards. Customized view windows are adjusted to specific scenes, so that guests can enjoy the unique view of the water, mountains and sky in all directions. On the north side near the town are three groups of guest rooms hidden in the bamboo forest. The central shared courtyards give each room private scenery.

The mountains and forests around the resort are rich in bamboo and granite. Donggu Village is also an important gathering place for the SHE nationality in China and retains many handicraft traditions. In our design, local bamboo is worked into a serious of traditional crafts to become architectural and landscape elements, such as bamboo tiles, bamboo bricks, and bamboo floors. At the same time, we use the local rammed earth technology to combine various bamboo pieces with mountain granite pieces to form a unique exterior wall system. Overall, local natural materials account for more than 83% of the total project materials. The remaining concrete, steel and glass were strictly designed as recyclable elements, prefabricated at the factory and assembled on site.