A Renowned Director's Home at Shanghai One Sino Park

Pin0 LinkedIn0Shares0

On a late spring evening in Manhattan in 2023, designer Fang Lei received a call from Mr. L who invited him to design his new home at One Sino Park in Shanghai. Fang Lei returned to China a month later and they began an in-depth discussion. Considering Mr. L’s professional habits, potential changes in family dynamics, and the current state of the new house, the existing interior design lacked harmony in hardware, style, color, functionality, and details. Mr. L fully embraced personalized design customization to create a home that truly met his needs.

Analysis and Remodeling

This wasn’t the first time Fang Lei had collaborated with the renowned director Mr. L. This time, their working relationship was even stronger. While Mr. L’s expectations for his new home were still rooted in the basic requirements from their previous project, many new ideas and concepts were also introduced. Fang Lei shared, “We had a very smooth communication. We could’ve quickly provided a design plan based on our experience with the previous residence, but I immediately thought better of it. I hoped that after six years, I could give them a more relevant and up-to-date lifestyle experience.” Mr. L later mentioned that when he moved in, there were indeed many delightful surprises.

The two-story space is divided into upper and lower levels, and Fang Lei meticulously evaluated the architectural structure, longitudinal layout, traffic flow, and floor connections. A key issue in the renovation was to improve the lighting on the first floor. To address this, the original closed layout has been changed to open up all spaces and emphasize interconnectivity based on the architectural features and house layout.

The original foyer felt tight and confined, with the left wall’s structure limiting potential modifications. To address this, Fang Lei utilized visual techniques to enhance the vertical space. He designed a pleasingly uneven and layered effect on the main entrance wall and recessed the master bedroom door, creating a sense of spaciousness and ease both physically and visually.

The use of floor-to-ceiling windows optimizes natural light from the south-facing side, creating a seamless connection between the interior and the courtyard. To further enhance the lighting, a ceiling light film has been incorporated as an artificial light source. The smooth, thoughtfully interconnected layout allows the kitchen and dining areas to also take in the courtyard views through the doorways.

Exploring the Best Design Language

The home is designed as a blank canvas for the homeowner’s self-expression, with the designer drawing inspiration from Mr. L’s professional background to craft a space that seamlessly blends tranquility with cyberpunk and futuristic elements. Despite these bold choices, comfort and ambiance are never compromised. A flexible cabinet system made of travertine stone adorns the television backdrop, allowing the artwork to be repositioned to reveal the television when desired. This innovative design enables the display or concealment of the TV and other objects, reflecting Fang Lei’s meticulous attention to detail. The “open-the-television” concept ensures that functionality and aesthetics coexist harmoniously, making it an integral part of Mr. L’s distinctive lifestyle.

As time passes, the light fluctuates between brightness and shadow, causing the colors to subtly change in various ways. Metal corrugated panels and textured paint on vertical surfaces, along with playful splashes of color on walls, furniture, and other flat surfaces, break up the monotony and infuse the space with character. The art collection is thoughtfully integrated with the furniture and design elements, ensuring that every detail resonates with the overall design concept.

The original pillars on the balcony presented a design challenge for the living room, as the designer needed to maintain a smooth flow between functional areas while preserving the visual openness of the space. The solution was to use the pillars to create a bar area, creating a transitional space that can either function as part of the living room or connect to the courtyard through glass sliding doors. This versatile area allows for multiple uses and adapts to different needs.

Fang Lei carefully adjusted the space ratio between the dining room and kitchen, focusing on practicality and ease of use. He optimized the dining room layout to allow for smooth movement and increased the kitchen’s depth to offer plenty of storage and workspace. The thoughtful integration of materials contributes to a neat and refined style, enhancing the space’s overall aesthetic appeal.

Building a Quiet Home

Mr. L maintained a consistent requirement in each renovation: a generously sized bedroom and bathroom. The master suite seamlessly combines style and comfort with its open-concept design. Calming neutral tones establish a peaceful and serene atmosphere. Floor-to-ceiling windows invite the beauty of the outdoor courtyard into the room, fostering a sense of relaxation through a close connection with nature.

During his precious moments of leisure, Mr. L enjoys unwinding with a book while soaking in the bathtub. The master bathroom features multiple mirrors that reflect off each other, creating the illusion of endless space and enhancing the modern, futuristic atmosphere. A rotating vanity cabinet offers convenient storage for the lady of the house’s daily essentials.

The secondary bedroom maintains a similar simplicity, featuring warm tones and a cozy, laid-back ambiance. The seamless integration of the bedroom door with the internal sliding door allows for versatile use of the en suite bathroom, enabling it to double as a guest bathroom when needed.

An Encounter with Artistic Wonder

The staircase linking the upper and lower levels is designed with a blend of form, material, and lighting, highlighting its transparency and lightness. This thoughtful combination creates a captivating play of light and visual elements, adding intriguing details that draw closer inspection.

The basement entrance provides an alternative way into the house, where a sense of arrival and ritual is just as important. Fang Lei has used a corridor to define various functional zones, carefully curating human organ sculptures, unique ornaments, and artworks in each corner to create creative displays. Walking through the corridor feels like exploring an art gallery, with new and intriguing discoveries at every step.

A Corner for One’s Emotions

Mr. L’s home features an impressive collection of rare and limited-edition sneakers. Fang Lei incorporated custom cabinets and lighting, creating a chic floor-to-ceiling display area to showcase these. This space also serves as a guest room, with soft tones that evoke a sense of calm and refinement.

Mr. L’s media room downstairs is designed to align with his professional habits. Located away from the main staircase to minimize any disturbance to the living areas, this space serves both his work and entertainment needs. Consistent with the overall design philosophy, careful attention has been given to the placement of speakers and the acoustic design, ensuring a professional-grade audio and visual experience.

Mr. L, an enthusiastic reader with a vast book collection, has transformed his study room into a serene retreat for reading and writing. A treadmill positioned beneath a skylight enables him to engage in refreshing workouts while staying connected to the outdoors. Additionally, a versatile door at the end of the room can be opened to link the media room and study or closed for privacy.

On the day of the photoshoot, the lady of the house was present and couldn’t contain her excitement, exclaiming, “I am thinking about the day we decided to give this home a makeover. Look at all this. We have made the right decision and a worthwhile one!” At that moment, the joy and satisfaction of the home seemed almost palpable. Indeed, a home is meant to offer family members an exceptional living experience, and this is precisely the design vision and value orientation we have for every private residence!

A Renowned Director’s Home at Shanghai One Sino Park Gallery

A Renowned Director's Home At Shanghai One Sino Park 49

About Mr. Fang Lei, the Founder of One House Design

Mr. Fang Lei, a renowned interior designer, the pioneer of modern minimalist design, the guide of the urban elite’s lifestyle, is also the founder of One House Design.

In recent years, Mr. Fang has won multiple domestic and international interior design awards. Mr. Fang believes that the designer’s thinking is a combination of sensibility and rationality, and he is good at using the aesthetic concept of modern simplicity style to develop the multi-dimensional description of space, present the abundant and pure design essence with the method of restraint and balance, the contradiction entity between appearance and internal.

Established in 2009 by Mr. Fang Lei, One House Design has a group of dynamic teams with forward-looking ideas and international vision. As a comprehensive and professional design company integrating interior, soft-mounted design and environmental, One House is mainly engaged in the design projects of real estate’s sales center, show flat, club, commercial space, office space, boutique hotel, etc., providing the high-end level and personalized customization services for many well-known real estate developers.

With excellent design ability and untiring exploration, One House responds and embraces the future and the market actively is committed to the enlightenment and renewal in the new concept of contemporary human settlements, demonstrating more possibilities for design.