Designed by GS Design to both mirror and frame its natural coastline location, the Sumei Skyline Coast Boutique Hotel uses architectural form and furniture in a palette of pure white and bright blue to make a strong statement that sculpts the space in which it sits…
The Sumei Skyline Coast Boutique Hotel is located on the Skyline Coast in Sanya Hainan in China, a popular tourist attraction that is all about the vast open seascape, a seascape which is also the definitive point of inspiration for this project. Inspired by the ocean and the winding coastline surrounding it, the façade of this hotel is designed to mirror the rise and fall of the waves along the shore while the interior is all about maximising the views, and presenting guests with a series of sculpted and framed spaces.
Image credit: GS Design
Shenzhen based practice GS Design are responsible for both the architecture and the interior design.The project is all about the space and the shapes within it, with the minimal palette making a strong design statement as the pure white forms are set in contrast to the sky, the seascape and the sunset.
“We work to craft the space into a timely and sophisticated art piece with long lifespan of usage by adopting this classic color.” GS Design
Image credit: GS Design
The surrounding blue of the sky and the sea has been curated into views and vistas within a series of arches and architectural forms with careful consideration to proportions. Broad curves of pure white become sculptural statements against the contrasting colour of the sky. The ocean and beach, the palms and the sky are all collected within the arch shape frame with precise aesthetic proportion guiding the entire process. Wandering by the consecutive arch shaped windows, guests are offered a broad vision of pure white that frames and emphasises the vivid natural scenery of the exterior. Heights, shapes, depth are all considered to create a multi layered surface that relates to the environment.
Image credit: GS Design
Space has been designed to flow freely around curves and corners with a blurring of visual boundaries. On the exterior deck, the swimming pool is visually integrated with the ocean and the infinite blue sky, presenting guests with the natural experience of swimming freely in the vast ocean. Within this space, every view is considered and every vista framed or sculpted by the structure. Depth of water is as important as the walls around it with the shallow water working as a mirror of the sky, the stone steps and the sunken seating area define and give the space order. Everything works together to provides a relaxing interactive scene fusing nature and art.
Image credit: GS Design
GS Designs have deconstructed the space by using simple graphic shapes. The circles within the squares overlap and interconnect which creates the in-depth vertical layered effect in the hot spring area. The shifting of light and shadow is key to the poetry of the spatial structure; the silhouette of the waves, the afterglow of the sunset, and the ripples of the hot spring pool are all part of a single composition. Natural light is used to frame architectural shapes, and the relationship between light and shade is key to the design. Windows bring the waves and sunset into the space, while the skylight directly above a bed brings sparkling starlight, enhancing the connection to nature that directs this entire design. The interior design is minimalist with all furniture and textiles in the space in pure white with an emphasis on texture and form, the interplay of delicate and rough, light and shade, replacing colour.
Image credit: GS Design
The furniture in this hotel is as sculptural and as architectural as the space in which it sits. The design has again maximized the views and the scenery by introducing various perspectives through the height difference of the furniture. Every view is considered as part of the design, and the placement of the furniture is as much about functionality as it is about how it breaks up and defines the space in which it is placed.
Image credit: GS Design
Defined by the strong geometry; circles, semi-circles, and squares are repeated throughout and used to frame the building and the space around it. This design is all about the pictures, the views, the vistas created by both the architecture and the forms within. Everything has been designed to maximise the purity of the scenery in which the Sumei Skyline Coast Boutique Hotel is embedded.
Main image credit: GS Design
