Fairyland Guorui Villa
Reconciling tradition and innovation is a challenge common to all forward-looking societies. In China, where traditional living arrangements and cultural expectations are increasingly coming into conflict with a changing economy and new expectations from younger generations of upwardly mobile citizens, an innovative community outside of Beijing is offering a solution to this question that manifests itself both in lived experience and design philosophy.
By Kate Dannies
The Fairyland Guorui Villa project was recently completed and is now becoming home to forward looking and traditional minded families in the Beijing suburbs. UNStudio, the international architecture firm with offices in Amsterdam, Hong Kong, and Shanghai, conceived and executed the project.
Located close enough to Beijing for commuters, yet distant enough to offer a pleasant suburban environment, The Fairyland Guorui Villa development is part of the new Beijing Miyun Industrial Park, an up and coming area along the banks of the Baihe River. Accordingly, the new development enjoys sweeping river views and a pleasant isolator from the rigours of urban life.
The architects designed the homes with the landscape in mind; the undulating lines of the housing complex echo the forms of the river landscape and the clay coloured and curvaceous facades of the development’s structures mirror the nearby natural landscape. UNStudio also took full advantage of the fact that the building site is in a less densely populated area of Beijing, building in expansive public spaces and surrounding the complex with greenery to ensure privacy and the continuation of a suburban lifestyle as the area develops.
The architects’ approach to the public spaces and the homes reflects the need for balance between community and individuality in today’s China. The shared public spaces, unified facades, and material palettes used in the complex provide a sense of continuity and community, while the forms of the individual sculptural villas provide distinction and differentiation within the development.
The villas therefore appear pleasingly similar while also manifesting interesting differences. Integrated features such as balconies, bay windows, canopies, terraces, and roof gardens distinguish each home, providing an individual identity and a strong inside-outside integration in the design. The geometric flexibility of these design elements within a unified design mandate results in a dynamic development striking the right balance between innovation and tradition.
The interiors of the villas were built to accommodate multigenerational living, which remains a strong tradition in Chinese culture. As such, each home incorporates a variety of rooms suited for family members of all ages, designed to ensure the comfort and privacy of all generations within the home.
The Fairyland Guorui Villa project is a model of what modern housing complex developments should be. Taking the surrounding landscape and the practical and cultural needs of the future residents into consideration, UNStudio has created a development that is both functional and appealing while also incorporating innovative and imaginative design elements and concepts, and providing a vision for the future.
