Four Homes, Four Visions: How Four Stunning Chinese Homes Redefine Design
What happens when design becomes more than just aesthetics – where every detail, material and space captures beauty and purpose?
Design Seed is teaming up with Guangzhou Design Week and Carenessland in showcasing homes that don’t just look extraordinary but live extraordinarily, capturing good designs and sharing their stories globally.
Working with Carenessland and Guangzhou Design Week, we believe oriental designs deserve global attention as we work towards elevating the entire design scene internationally. Here’s a look at our adventure so far exploring four homes with differing characters curated by four accomplished designers.
Mansion In Nature
Designed by Nick Design
The first was a grand mansion of 170,000 sq ft designed by Nick of Nick Design. Curated as a beautiful landscape retreat, the home was inspired by classical Suzhou gardens. This home is composed of a modern luxury private mansion and a separate personal entertainment annex aptly named the Chalet. Surrounding these are a flowing koi pond housing 1000 koi fishes, a tea pavilion on a small hill and lush landscaping.
A massive 4 acres of land were transformed into borrowed landscape, integrating nature and architecture for a family home. In modern home designs, this is a road less travelled as bigger areas of land are curated as landscaping instead of creating more rooms.
The White House is the main body housing the family, with an elegant facade of white walls and glass. Using glass grants full view of the beautiful surrounding landscape while reflecting nature into the internal spaces.
With a cantilever roof, the home floats amidst nature and water. Full-height glass doors and windows blur the boundaries between outdoors and indoors. Every window in this house frames the beautifully green gardens, bringing the nature into its minimalist interiors.
Nick tells us about his design philosophy for this home, “Why is the interior design here relatively minimal? Because the outdoor is stunning so all the visual focus is directed outward.”
A black house stands in contrast as an extension, catering to the family’s entertainment needs. With a similar minimalist design identity, the landscape becomes the art accenting the spaces. Serene outdoor spaces create relaxing spaces to bask in the surrounding greenery. The Chalet provides a second tea room with a darker, mysterious atmosphere and a whisky room with cool, masculine aesthetics.
A tea pavilion sits on top of a small hill, decorated in a rustic yet modern interior. A serene tea-drinking experience in a holistic retreat created in the middle of nature.
Nick elaborates, “These three small buildings together create a small town in this tranquil space. Modernity is blended with an oriental touch and elements of the past across this 20-acre area. I don’t wanna follow trends, I wonder if I can create my own unique path within Oriental aesthetics. To be imitated by others, that is what I want to achieve with confidence. Not just ethnic pride but personal confidence, that’s crucial.”
With Nick’s thoughtful design, 170,000 sq ft of land was curated into a stunning living canvas. Celebrating the changing beauty of nature, the home is focused on healing its residents.
This home demonstrates the beauty of effective landscaping. Instead of trying to maximise the size or number of the rooms, homeowners should also prioritise space for landscaping. With immense mental and emotional benefits, landscaping is a design choice that will pay off in the long run.
The Basement House
Designed by PAL Design Group
The second project we featured is a home in Yiwu designed by Patrick Leung of PAL Design Group. Having founded PAL Design in 1994, Patrick Leung holds a design philosophy that merges creativity, timeless appeal and spiritual allure. Creating artistically designed spaces to enhance the quality of life. Patrick Leung and his team have received more than 300 international awards and one of his most significant recent portfolio is the Mandarin Palace Villa in Nanjing.
Every corner of this home is utilised efficiently by integrating hobby spaces with interior design. The basement levels are designed as spaces for relaxing, family activities and hobbies.
With a double volume void, a basement level is transformed to a bright and open living area. An intimate corner clad in green tiles brings visuals of nature into the basement. On a single level, spaces with different characters coexist, creating various experiences and functions.
The highlights of this home are the dedicated leather craft room and a brightly lit garage in the lowest basement level. Membrane lighting are used to imbue the basement spaces with an airy, open impression.
A second open living and dining area features interiors in a timeless modern luxury style, rich visual textures accent the spaces. The bedrooms in this home are a composition of similar thematic patterns in different textures. Hence, this creates a cohesive space yet still keeps it visually interesting.
Patrick Leung shares, “I understand very well what design truly requires. It’s not just about appearances, nor is it as simple as drawing. It’s about connecting with life because every space that exists like here, we hope to create a strong connection between everything in it with the homeowner. We don’t want to waste any space whether it’s for activities or living. Every stage should provide a good base or background for them.”
In the design of a home, dedicating space for hobbies is crucial but often overlooked. This curates the bedroom spaces as private refuge spaces, free from distractions. Multifunctional hobby spaces provide an avenue for the family to celebrate their creativity and relax.
Brutalist Nest
Designed by Xixi Design Consulting
The third home we are featuring is in a starkly contrasting style, designed by Hung Tsang Wei of Xixi Design Consulting Co, this brutalist home is composed of rough surfaces and textures. Volumes and light elevate the bare bones form of the house.
This home has been reorientated from a small entrance at street level with a driveway that curves around the house. The new entrance greets visitors with a pathway between blooming flowers and the view of a large pond, creating a grander entrance.
The living room displays proudly curated pieces of art composed of soil and vibrantly textured furniture pieces. A pillar serves to visually separate the open kitchen and dining area. This creates a better dining experience for the family as it minimises clutter and distractions.
In the basement, an incense room is designed with an unusual slanted ceiling, creating a cosy space. The designer shares with us how the house was already constructed and the proportions are already set. He explains that, by using the ceiling, we can readjust the proportions of the house.
A meditation room hovers above an open study with a triangular opening into the space below. The clean, minimalist white master bedroom has an unusual concept of open bedroom and bathroom. Regarding the privacy issue, the toilet and shower are strategically positioned in private corners. We thought we had seen all of the master bedroom. But concealed behind sliding doors is a visually pleasing sunroom. A light-filled space to relax and catch up on some reading.
This home curates various multifunctional space for play and study on the first floor. A spacious family hall with board marked concrete walls creates a warm, textured space. The children’s rooms are also connected by a back garden, creating more spaces for play and interaction. This brutalist home in Guangdong stands composed of rough surfaces, volumes and light.
oriental Villa
Designed by C&C Design
This home was curated with calming, muted colours and rich textures to create the atmosphere of a luxurious tropical villa. Designed by Peng Zheng of C&C Design, an award-winning designer who thinks and practices the design philosophy of symbiosis in architecture, interior design and landscape.
Effective space planning can completely transform the way a home is experienced. In the city of Chengdu, China, this modern entrance opens directly into a foreign scene of palms and cacti, feeling like a tropical retreat.
Peng Zheng shares with us that with these plants that look like they belong to hot climates, they hope to add a Moroccan vibe. The outdoor oasis features a cosy wooden deck paired with a rustic fire pit.
The open plan living and dining area is in modern luxury style with Moroccan elements. In a palette of soothing colours paired with various textures, the space exudes comfort and exotic beauty. The organic shaped ceiling adds depth and contrast to the home, creating a modern look.
By wrapping the stairs around the new addition of the lift, the living spaces are optimised. The master bedroom is a luxurious hotel-like design with the bed placed in the middle, anchored by a long curved headboard. The master bathroom features statement sinks made of Dali stone in a luxurious space.
The second basement floor provided spaces for relaxing and entertaining in a modern lounge and a tranquil tea room. The double volume skylight in the tea room draws sunlight in. On the first basement floor is every child’s dream. An entire playroom is dedicated to a racing tabletop game with shelves displaying car memorabilia and a small gaming hall.
Often times homeowners try to squeeze more rooms into the layout but the purpose of those rooms may be an afterthought. Instead, prioritising how a space feels and flows instead can entirely elevate a home.
These spaces remind us that a home is more than a structure—it’s a reflection of intention, a canvas for self-expression, and a healing sanctuary. From Nick’s serene landscape retreat to Patrick’s creative sanctuary, Hung’s bold brutalist home, and Peng’s tropical haven, each home tells a story of human connection, purpose, and artistic vision.
Stay tuned to Design Seed for the upcoming episodes of the stunning homes of Brutalist Nest and Oriental Villa!
Check out our article on the Other House in Guangzhou here, an artistic home for a family.
Thank you for taking the time to read this Article. Stay tuned for more updates!
