Flowing Cloud Township Villa

Flowing Cloud Township Villa is located in Qinglongwu，a centennial village in Tonglu. In 2017, MDO was commissioned to renovate 6 existing village houses and transform them into guest houses, a reception, bar and restaurant.

MDO’s idea was to create a new rural retreat which celebrates local culture and tradition through the sensitive renovation of the old structures, using local techniques, local materials and local craftsmen. Visitors will be able to experience an environment in touch with the nature, a chance to disconnect from their busy urban lives. The retreat will offer new employment opportunities for local people, allowing them to share their rich cultural heritage.

The primary elements of the project included:

I．The existing structures of rammed earth walls, historical windows and doors are all retained and refurbished. New elements are treated as modern insertions allowing guests to clearly read the relationship between the old and the new.

II．The dilapidated roofs were lifted and restored with traditional techniques and materials to create more usually ceiling heights. A clerestory window was formed around the edge, allowing diffused light to penetrate the depths of the space, and guests can see the bamboo forest from any angle in the room.

III．The existing gloomy interiors were brightened by adding New metal frame windows into the walls following the haphazard patten of the existing timber windows. The design carefully considered the location of the new windows so the outside landscape is framed like paintings for the guests to enjoy from inside.

IV．Two new buildings were created on the foundations of a collapsed structure and establish a new dialogue with the countryside and nature.

The surface of the new buildings are rough concrete, in contrast to the traditional rammed earth of other village buildings. The concrete is allowed to weather, so that overtime they will be integrated into the landscape blurring the boundary between architecture and nature. The rough facade contrasts with the crisp windows which frame the softer, warmer interiors.