House of Dayou

Conceived for Shanghai-based artist Dayou Geng, the residence serves not merely as a domestic interior, but as a spatial extension of the client's physical and creative being. Rejecting traditional cellular floor plans, the intervention transforms a former industrial envelope into a continuous, open architectural system capable of evolving alongside his multifaceted practice—bridging art, spirituality, and everyday social life.

Essential domestic functions are isolated into distinct, freestanding pavilions, each defined by a bespoke materiality. To preserve the purity of the primary gathering area, no doors are directly visible from the main space. Access to private quarters and sanctuaries is achieved entirely through rotation and massing—forcing inhabitants to physically navigate around the blind corners of each volume to discover the thresholds. This approach eliminates the standard corridor, transforming the simple act of entering a room into a deliberate, tactile spatial sequence.

Operating as the gravitational center, the primary living volume remains radically unobstructed to accommodate large-scale readings, social events, and musical production. In stark contrast, the studio is constructed as a fully transparent core, deeply integrating the artist’s creative process with his daily domestic rhythms.

Ascending to the upper terrace, the boundaries between the industrial shell and the surrounding urban ecology dissolve. The dining block and expansive viewing decks stretch outward to engage the canopy of mature trees, securing a brutal yet deeply grounded urban sanctuary.