David Chipperfield Architects and Aim Architecture design ceramic-inspired hotel in China’s porcelain capital
David Chipperfield Architects and Aim Architecture unite for the Taoxichuan Hotel project in Jingdezhen

Taoxichuan Hotel in China’s porcelain capital, Jingdezhen, incorporates the heritage of the area into a new project by David Chipperfield Architects, with interior design by Aim Architecture. The exterior and interior of the hotel nod to its location in the Jiangxi province of eastern China, an area famous for porcelain production for more than 1,000 years. The site itself, close to Jingdezhen city centre, was once home to porcelain factories and is now rethought as a mixed-use quarter.
The hotel, part of The Unbound Collection by Hyatt, translates ceramic into its architecture, interior, and furniture. Aim Architecture considers this cultural context in a plethora of interior details that build on the architecture itself, including the use of brick for some interior surfaces, echoing the exterior façades.
Taoxichuan Hotel in China by David Chipperfield Architects
Spaces throughout the hotel pay tribute to the history of porcelain, tracing the journey it has taken from China and around the world. Each space interprets and celebrates different ceramic characteristics and techniques, from the green celadon glazing in the lobby to the calm clay tones of the bedrooms. In the communal areas, unglazed finishes add a grounded feel to a sociable space, while light hues define the meeting space and ballroom.
For David Chipperfield Architects, the location of the hotel lent itself naturally to the key design codes of the building. ‘David Chipperfield Architects developed a master plan, which preserves, restores and converts the existing buildings while complementing them with new buildings,’ they say.
‘The practice was also appointed to design three of the buildings within the master plan: the Grand Theatre, a music academy, and a hotel complex. The hotel complex is situated to the south. It consists of four separate buildings comprising a four-star hotel, a five-star hotel, and an events venue with a light steel structure connecting them at ground level to create communal outdoor areas for various public activities
Information
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Hannah Silver is the Art, Culture, Watches & Jewellery Editor of Wallpaper*. Since joining in 2019, she has overseen offbeat design trends and in-depth profiles, and written extensively across the worlds of culture and luxury. She enjoys meeting artists and designers, viewing exhibitions and conducting interviews on her frequent travels.
-
Premium patisserie Naya is Mayfair’s latest sweet spot
Heritage meets opulence at Naya bakery in Mayfair, London. With interiors by India Hicks and Anna Goulandris, the patisserie looks good enough to eat
-
Discover midcentury treasures in Marylebone with Álvaro by Appointment
London is full of sequestered design havens, and Wallpaper* knows them all. Allow us to point you in the direction of Álvaro González’s shop window on Nottingham Place, home to a bonanza of beautiful 20th-century antiques
-
Beach chic: the all-new Citroën Ami gets an acid-tinged, open-air Buggy variant
Citroën have brought a dose of polychromatic playfulness to their new generation Ami microcar, the cult all-ages electric quadricycle that channels the spirit of the 2CV for the modern age
-
Tour the best contemporary tea houses around the world
Celebrate the world’s most unique tea houses, from Melbourne to Stockholm, with a new book by Wallpaper’s Léa Teuscher
-
Prada and Wong Kar-wai dream up a cinematic restaurant in Shanghai
Prada partners with Wong Kar-wai to bring Mi Shang Rong Zhai to life, a dining experience influenced by the arthouse director’s seminal oeuvre
-
Enjoy heritage views and contemporary brews at a new Beijing café
JM Café, White Pagoda Temple by B.L.U.E. Architecture Studio nods to the history of the Xicheng District while injecting a shot of vitality
-
Must-visit cinemas with award-worthy design
There’s more magic to the movies at these design-led cinemas, from Busan Cinema Centre’s ‘flying’ roof to The Gem Cinema Jaipur’s art deco allure
-
China’s Alila Shanghai hotel is a stylish hub of idle tranquillity
Alila Shanghai, the brand's first urban resort in Greater China, is a serene bolthole amidst the pulse of the Jing'an district
-
2025 getaways: where Wallpaper* editors will be travelling to this year
From the Japanese art islands of Naoshima and Teshima to the Malaysian tropical paradise of Langkawi, here’s where Wallpaper* editors plan to travel to in 2025
-
Travel back to the Ming dynasty at Beijing’s new Mandarin Oriental hotel
Mandarin Oriental Qianmen merges traditional culture with contemporary needs in a 600-year-old historical building complex
-
Inside Palazzo Versace Macau, a lavish, mosaic-rich hotel
Palazzo Versace Macau, the brand’s first hotel in Asia, continues to preserve Donatella Versace’s swanky hospitality vision