Reviving History: Ye Tian's Renmin Road 1979

Blending Old and New in a Modern Sales Center

Renmin Road, a significant artery of Kunming's historical and cultural life, was established in 1979. It has since been a witness to the city's industrial and economic growth. With urban renewal, the old town of Kunming has been given a new lease on life, and Renmin Road, a symbol of the old town's emotions, has adapted to the changing times.

Ye Tian's design for the Renmin Road 1979 sales center is a tribute to this historical road. The design revolves around the themes of Time, Emotion, and City, interpreting the transition from the old Renmin Road to the new urban development. The existing buildings and spaces have been maintained and reshaped, with inward construction adopted for development. The urban memory, cultural symbols, and their underlying logics have been preserved using modern design techniques, creating a harmonious blend of the old and new.

The design is realized using environmentally friendly stones poured by cement, complemented with mirror-finished stainless steel sheets and gray cement sheets. The dynamic and static parts in functional spaces are distinguished using columns. The partition and combination of geometric blocks are continued, echoed with soft decoration, to fully express and extend the design tactics. The overall space is 488 square meters.

The design process involved several site visits and in-depth research into the history and humanities of Renmin Road. The designer faced challenges in handling the inclined planes dominating the lobby area, which made onsite measurement and calculation difficult. However, these challenges were overcome with modern crafting techniques and aesthetic taste, resulting in a unique background wall for the bar area made from thousands of staggered acrylic sheets.

Ye Tian's Renmin Road 1979 is more than just a sales center. It is a space that evokes the emotion of the old town and relives its cultural history and memory. It is a testament to the power of design in preserving and revitalizing urban memory, and a shining example of the fusion of old and new in modern architecture.