Add To Collection
Add to Collection
HOME IN GUOMAO CBD
HOME IN GUOMAO CBD
Beijing, China
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
View Original
Add To Collection
Add to Collection
Other Projects by MARS Studio
HOME IN GUOMAO CBD
Beijing, China
Designing my own home
As an architect, I have always been able to find clear answers when designing for others. But when the client became myself, those answers were far less certain. Designing my own home turned out to be more challenging than designing any other project.
Located in Beijing's Guomao CBD, the apartment looks out onto a dense skyline and the constant rhythm of the city. The starting point of the project was, in fact, the opposite: to create a home that feels calm, relaxed, and ordered amid the fast pace of urban life.
A Space for Inward Growth
At the entrance, a continuous timber volume forms a compressed threshold instead of revealing the interior at once. Floating cabinetry reduces the visual weight of the volume, while mirrored surfaces soften its boundaries and preserve a sense of openness. Only after this subtle transition does the living space gradually unfold.
Rather than dividing the home into clearly defined functional rooms, I wanted the spaces to flow naturally into one another. The living room, dining area, and study remain visually and spatially connected, while the private zones are separated through changes in scale and materiality instead of solid partitions.
A continuous timber volume serves as the primary spatial framework throughout the home. Storage, circulation, doors, feature walls, and functional elements are integrated into a unified "timber box" system. Concealed storage and softened boundaries reduce visual clutter, allowing the communal spaces to feel more open, fluid, and uninterrupted.
Between Openness and Privacy
Within the warm timber palette, the dining bar introduces silver metal and darker finishes to create contrast and depth. Cool-toned metal panels define the functional area, while the black dining table becomes a quiet visual anchor within the otherwise soft and restrained interior.
Adjacent to the dining area, the study is enclosed by operable sliding doors, allowing the space to shift freely between openness and privacy. When closed, it becomes calm and focused; when opened, it reconnects with the living and dining spaces, creating a more fluid relationship throughout the public area. This adaptable boundary allows the home to respond naturally to different moments of everyday life.
The bedroom continues the same restrained spatial language. Timber volumes integrate storage, doors, and surfaces into a unified composition, dissolving the boundaries between architecture and furniture. Custom floating beds, cabinets, and desks introduce a sense of lightness while preserving openness within the compact footprint.
Time & Light
Warm timber, soft textiles, cool metal panels, black wood finishes, and muted materials together establish a quiet backdrop. Light becomes the most expressive element in the space. Whether filtered through sheer curtains during the day or concealed within architectural surfaces at night, illumination remains soft, even, and understated. By reducing unnecessary visual distractions, the design allows time and light to shape the atmosphere of the home.
I never intended this home to carry the complexity of the outside world. Instead, it is conceived as a place where life deliberately slows down—a space where light, materials, scent, sound, and everyday routines become softer over time. Rather than defining what a home should be, the project explores how to create a quiet refuge within the relentless pace of Beijing's CBD.
Project Name: Home in Guomao CBD
Design: MARS Studio
Design year: 2024.10 — 2024.11
Completion year: 2024.12 — 2025.02
Location: Beijing, China
Interior Area: 138 ㎡
Director Designer: Ma Ning
Main Designer: Chen Yue
Design Team: Wang Yuan, Li Zimu, Yang Shaohui, Zhu Ke
Lighting Design: Tao Wen, ZHIJING Lighting Studio
Whole House Customization: Tao Tao
Smart Home System: Moorgen
Furniture Brands: HAY, &Tradition, Herman Miller
Microcement: Cement
Sanitary Ware: Roca
Curtain: SHANG DE
Photography & Videography: Coppakstudio
As an architect, I have always been able to find clear answers when designing for others. But when the client became myself, those answers were far less certain. Designing my own home turned out to be more challenging than designing any other project.
Located in Beijing's Guomao CBD, the apartment looks out onto a dense skyline and the constant rhythm of the city. The starting point of the project was, in fact, the opposite: to create a home that feels calm, relaxed, and ordered amid the fast pace of urban life.
A Space for Inward Growth
At the entrance, a continuous timber volume forms a compressed threshold instead of revealing the interior at once. Floating cabinetry reduces the visual weight of the volume, while mirrored surfaces soften its boundaries and preserve a sense of openness. Only after this subtle transition does the living space gradually unfold.
Rather than dividing the home into clearly defined functional rooms, I wanted the spaces to flow naturally into one another. The living room, dining area, and study remain visually and spatially connected, while the private zones are separated through changes in scale and materiality instead of solid partitions.
A continuous timber volume serves as the primary spatial framework throughout the home. Storage, circulation, doors, feature walls, and functional elements are integrated into a unified "timber box" system. Concealed storage and softened boundaries reduce visual clutter, allowing the communal spaces to feel more open, fluid, and uninterrupted.
Between Openness and Privacy
Within the warm timber palette, the dining bar introduces silver metal and darker finishes to create contrast and depth. Cool-toned metal panels define the functional area, while the black dining table becomes a quiet visual anchor within the otherwise soft and restrained interior.
Adjacent to the dining area, the study is enclosed by operable sliding doors, allowing the space to shift freely between openness and privacy. When closed, it becomes calm and focused; when opened, it reconnects with the living and dining spaces, creating a more fluid relationship throughout the public area. This adaptable boundary allows the home to respond naturally to different moments of everyday life.
The bedroom continues the same restrained spatial language. Timber volumes integrate storage, doors, and surfaces into a unified composition, dissolving the boundaries between architecture and furniture. Custom floating beds, cabinets, and desks introduce a sense of lightness while preserving openness within the compact footprint.
Time & Light
Warm timber, soft textiles, cool metal panels, black wood finishes, and muted materials together establish a quiet backdrop. Light becomes the most expressive element in the space. Whether filtered through sheer curtains during the day or concealed within architectural surfaces at night, illumination remains soft, even, and understated. By reducing unnecessary visual distractions, the design allows time and light to shape the atmosphere of the home.
I never intended this home to carry the complexity of the outside world. Instead, it is conceived as a place where life deliberately slows down—a space where light, materials, scent, sound, and everyday routines become softer over time. Rather than defining what a home should be, the project explores how to create a quiet refuge within the relentless pace of Beijing's CBD.
Project Name: Home in Guomao CBD
Design: MARS Studio
Design year: 2024.10 — 2024.11
Completion year: 2024.12 — 2025.02
Location: Beijing, China
Interior Area: 138 ㎡
Director Designer: Ma Ning
Main Designer: Chen Yue
Design Team: Wang Yuan, Li Zimu, Yang Shaohui, Zhu Ke
Lighting Design: Tao Wen, ZHIJING Lighting Studio
Whole House Customization: Tao Tao
Smart Home System: Moorgen
Furniture Brands: HAY, &Tradition, Herman Miller
Microcement: Cement
Sanitary Ware: Roca
Curtain: SHANG DE
Photography & Videography: Coppakstudio
Product Spec Sheet
Were your products used?
Join as a manufacturer to add your products.