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The Waterhouse at South Bund

Architect: Neri&Hu
Location: Shanghai, China
Type: Hotel
Year: 2010
Photographs: Pedro Pegenaute, Derryck Menere

The following description is courtesy of the architects. Located by the new Cool Docks development on the South Bund District of Shanghai, the Waterhouse is a four-story, 19-room boutique hotel built into an existing three-story Japanese Army headquarters building from the 1930’s. The boutique hotel fronts the Huangpu River and looks across at the gleaming Pudong skyline. The architectural concept behind Neri&Hu’s renovation rests on a clear contrast of what is old and new. The original concrete building has been restored while new additions built over the existing structure were made using Cor-Ten steel, reflecting the industrial past of this working dock by the Huangpu River. Neri&Hu’s structural addition, on the fourth floor, resonates with the industrial nature of the ships which pass through the river, providing an analogous contextual link to both history and local culture.

Neri&Hu was also responsible for the design of the hotel’s interior, which is expressed through both a blurring and inversion of the interior and exterior, as well as between the public and private realms, creating a disorienting yet refreshing spatial experience for the hotel guest who longs for an unique five-star hospitality experience. The public spaces allow one to peek into private rooms while the private spaces invite one to look out at the public arenas, such as the large vertical room window above the reception desk and the corridor windows overlooking the dining room. These visual connections of unexpected spaces not only bring an element of surprise, but also force the hotel guests to confront the local Shanghai urban condition where visual corridors and adjacencies in tight nong-tang’s define the unique spatial flavor of the city.

Project Details

• Hotel Name:  The Waterhouse at South Bund
  • Hotel Address: Maojiayuan Road No. 1-3, Huangpu District, Shanghai 200011
  • Hotel Tel (inc. country code): +86 21 6080 2988
  • Hotel Website: www.waterhouseshanghai.com
• Hotel Features:
  • No. of Bedrooms: 19
  • Restaurant(s): Table No. 1 by Jason Atherton
  • Bar(s): The Roof at Waterhouse
  • Spa, Health & Leisure Facilities: Gym
  • Meeting & Event Facilities: Multi-purpose event warehouse
  • Other Facilities: The Lobby lounge for light meal, afternoon tea and cocktail.
• Completion Date: May 2010
• Design Period: May 2008 – Apr 2010
• Gross square footage: 2800sqm
• Site area: 800sqm
• Interior Designer: Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
• Architect: Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
• Owner: Cameron Holdings Hotel Management Limited
• Contractors / Consultants:
  • Structure Consultants: China Jingye Engineering Technology Company
  • Mechanical Consultant: Far East Consulting Engineers Limited
  • Kitchen Consultant: Polytek Engineering Company Ltd.