- Project: BAN Villa
- Architect: B.L.U.E. Architecture Studio
- Location: China, Jijiadun Village, Kunshan City
- Year: 2021
- Area: 1800 m2
- Photography: Zhi Xia
A Village at the Crossroads of Tradition and Renewal
The BAN Villa project sits at the entrance of Jijiadun Village, a picturesque Jiangnan settlement near Shanghai. Like many rural communities in China, Jijiadun faces the pressures of rapid urbanization and depopulation. To counter rural decline, the local government launched a redevelopment initiative, inviting creative industries and new residents from the city while respecting the village’s cultural fabric.
In this context, BAN Villa emerges as both a private retreat and a shared communal hub. Commissioned by a village native wishing to return home later in life, the villa is part personal residence, part guesthouse—a place where urban dwellers can experience rural Jiangnan culture in a contemporary setting.
Concept: Interweaving Private and Public
B.L.U.E. Architecture Studio’s design rethinks the relationship between city and countryside. The villa is envisioned not just as a single home but as a cluster of interconnected volumes, allowing nature to infiltrate the architecture and blurring boundaries between interior and exterior.
The program is divided into ten independent boxes, arranged along a continuous connective space. These volumes host a mix of public and private functions—restaurants, tearooms, guest rooms, and the owner’s residence—offering both intimacy and community under one roof.
Spatial Design: A Contemporary Jiangnan Watertown
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Ground Floor: Guest rooms and main social spaces line the riverside in a staggered formation, ensuring privacy and optimal views. A continuous corridor doubles as an exhibition and living space, where daylight filters in through courtyards and operable skylights. This public passageway becomes a shared stage for interaction.
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Upper Floor: The ten small boxes appear as a floating village beneath a unifying roof. Pebble-paved courtyards and open walkways link the rooms, while terraces extend living areas outdoors. From a distance, the ensemble resembles a contemporary interpretation of Jiangnan’s iconic water towns.
Material Strategy: Warmth Below, Purity Above
Material choices reinforce the project’s layered atmosphere.
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Ground Level: Facades are clad in laminated bamboo, chosen for its warm tactility, weather resistance, and harmony with the local environment.
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Upper Level: A more minimal and pure aesthetic dominates—white stucco walls, matte white metal roofs, galvanized steel panels, and rough off-white pebbles create an atmosphere of lightness and clarity.
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Interior Spaces: Off-white stucco walls, terrazzo floors, and natural wood furniture define the communal areas, providing a bright backdrop for exhibitions and gatherings. Guest rooms follow a consistent palette of stucco, terrazzo, and wood, accented with exposed aggregate concrete in shower areas for texture and slip resistance.
This material duality—earthy warmth below, serene purity above—embodies the dialogue between tradition and modern life.
Beyond Hospitality: A New Village Lifestyle
BAN Villa transcends the idea of a boutique guesthouse. It is conceived as a prototype for rural revitalization, where architecture creates opportunities for cultural exchange and shared living.
Guests can enjoy tea with the owner, experience Jiangnan’s quiet landscapes, and form new friendships in the villa’s communal spaces. It is a place where architecture becomes a platform for rediscovering community in the countryside, while offering urban residents a chance to reconnect with nature and tradition.
Drawings
