Yangzhou Jiuyue Heyuan

Located along the Ancient Grand Canal in Yangzhou, China, the project sits adjacent to He Garden—renowned as the "premier garden of the late Qing Dynasty." He Garden pioneered a multi-level circulation system within Chinese private gardens through its unique "interconnected corridors and winding galleries." Taking this spatial concept as its starting point, the project does not merely replicate the garden's forms but translates its underlying logic into a contemporary design language.

The design abstracts elements from He Garden—such as the layered enclosures of its courtyards, the intricate patterns of its decorative windows, and the rock-stacking techniques of the *Pianshi Shanhfang* (Rock-Stacking Studio)—and reinterprets them for a modern context. The spatial order of the historic corridors is reimagined as a 40-meter-long, sheltered waterside walkway; dark grey metal grilles and *Haitang*-shaped (begonia-flower) windows create a dynamic interplay of light and shadow, while a connection to the underground garage elevator integrates the pleasure of a "garden stroll" into the daily homecoming experience. Water serves as the garden's lifeblood, linked by bridges and accented with natural landscape stones; the philosophical essence of the *Pianshi Shanhfang* is distilled into a miniature landscape featuring Taihu stones and a cascading waterfall, recreating the grandeur of mountains and forests within a compact footprint. The waterside stage is reconstructed using translucent onyx—appearing like raw jade by day and transforming into a glowing light box by night—where the rhythmic movement of cascading water turns a traditional architectural form into a vessel of light.

Within the garden walls, the technique of "borrowed scenery" brings the Grand Canal Tower and the Ancient Grand Canal into view, creating a sense of vastness despite the enclosed setting. Guided by the concept of "One City, Two He Gardens," the design fuses Eastern aesthetics with modern sensibilities, utilizing contemporary materials and craftsmanship to recreate an urban mountain-forest retreat tailored to the present era.