The Opposite House

Swire (or Taikoo in Chinese) is a Sino-Anglo phenomenon. Founded in Liverpool by John Swire in 1861, the ‘hong’ (Cantonese for trading house) worked with Augustine Heard & Co in Shanghai. In 1866, Swire established its Hong Kong office in conjunction with R.S. Butterfield.

After Mao took over as chairman of the People’s Republic of China, Swire closed all of its offices on the mainland and operated solely out of Hong Kong. Today, Swire is a powerhouse, with diversified interests in aviation (Cathay Pacific and Dragonair), properties (Swire Properties’ portfolio includes serviced apartments at Pacific Place and the burgeoning Starstreet district in Wanchai, both in Hong Kong), commodities (Taikoo Sugar, bottler of Coke in China and ten states in America) and shipping (China Navigation Co Ltd). It is one of the two houses fictionalised in James Clavell’s sensationalist Nobel House, which depicts the intense rivalry between leading Hong Kong hongs, Swire and Jardine Matheson. Yet China changed as Swire evolved. The country is now no longer a cold war threat and Swire is ready to return to the country.

The Opposite House in Beijing is the first development from Swire Properties’ newly formed Swire Hotels arm. The company has employed legendary Japanese architect Kengo Kuma with Shanghai’s Neri & Hu Design and Research Office providing cutting edge restaurants and leisure areas.

Located in the Sanlitun district of Beijing as an anchor component of The Village at Sanlitun, The Opposite House gets its moniker from traditional Chinese homes, where the owners live on one side of a courtyard, and VIP guests stay on the opposite side in posh self-contained dwellings.

The Opposite House is the first bona fide hotel project for Kuma, yet his experimental Bamboo House villa for Commune by the Great Wall Kempinski in 2002 foreshadowed what was to come. On the outside, the sleek emerald glass façade melts into the overall look of The Village at Sanlitun, but the interiors, while retaining the green colour scheme, are decidedly more traditional. 99 guestrooms include ten studios with some clocking in at 70m2, making them among the most spacious retreats in Beijing. Brushed oak hardwood floors and subtle Asian accents instill a sense of place in the guestrooms. As a focal point in the public areas, a theatrical stainless steel swimming pool reflects a medley of fibre optic and natural lighting.

Fittingly, Kuma’s minimal sensibility and iconic Japanese twist on the ‘less is more’ philosophy is complemented by the colourfully disciplined work of Neri & Hu. Founding partner Lyndon Neri worked closely with Kengo Kuma on certain public areas: “His sense of aesthetics and the concepts that he is exploring are very similar to the issues we are experimenting with,” says Neri.

Neri, along with his wife and business partner Rossana Hu, filled in the blank canvas that Kuma provided in the basement to zone five distinct yet interactive spaces. The Egg is the first space that guests encounter when venturing into the basement – a white space beyond a dark bronze threshold that instills a sense of relaxing floatation. Beyond that is Sureno, a Mediterranean restaurant with a combination of concrete walls in the public spaces; warm wood surfaces with blue olive grove patterns are highlights of the private dining areas.

In contrast, Bei is a woody enclave where bird lights dance above the public dining space and chefs perform in front of a large mirror behind the bar.

The third space, Punk, is a bar akin to a transparent box with metal screens and wooden church pews forming a backdrop for the DJs who play there. “We treated the entire project as a city within a city – a continuous amalgamation of distinct spaces together,” Neri states. “We also hope to offer a fresh aesthetic to an overly-designed restaurant world – that fine dining can be interpreted in unexpected ways, and that good food does not necessarily mean the same old crystal chandeliers and velvet clad armchairs.”

The Opposite House
Building 1, 11 Sanlitun Road
Chaoyang District
100027 Beijing
People’s Republic of China
Tel: +8610 6417 6688
www.theoppositehouse.com

Rooms: 99 studios and penthouse
Food: The Village Cafe, Sureno, Bei

Drink: Mesh bar / Punk club
Leisure: Swimming pool and gym, Massage rooms
Facilities: Green Room multipurpose event space