The site of the DHAWA is the former Jinan Jiangxi Guild Hall building complex. The unique historical background of the project challenged the renovation to develop a new experience of the space under the conditions of preserving the existing architecture and representing local culture. Through innovative spatial organization to traditional architectural layout, the project team transformed the site into a new public area by enclosing and reconnecting the courtyard space between the two historically renovated buildings, transforming the exterior into a new interior public space that accommodates modern social lifestyle.
However, the renovation employed the negative space between the complex and the Jiangxi Guild Hall to install a glass staircase that leads from the lobby to the second floor, creating a visual connection between the indoor space and the outdoor historical scenery. Meanwhile, the grid glass ceiling serves as a light enclosure that brings in natural light forming an open and bright space, but also connects the experience of the interior and exterior.
Designer extracted visual elements to integrate into the modern space, implemented through decorative local craftsmanship. The renovated space responds to the architectural and contextual fabrics of the site as the "new knowledge" inherited by the modern hotel that is also actively participating in the broader historical and cultural narratives of the Baihua Pond District and the Daming Lake of Jinan.