yinjispace

INTERIOR
Second Party Design
PHOTOGRAPHY
Sun Lord
EDITOR
Gina
Collection

QIOBAN is located in a cultural and creative block transformed from the former Hanzhong Post Office. As a boutique bistro and café that fuses vintage and contemporary aesthetics, this 150 m² standalone renovation adheres to the philosophy of “restoring the old as it was.” By preserving original features such as grey bricks, white-washed walls, ancient timber beams, and red roof tiles, and punctuating them with restrained modern materials, we have created a unique realm where the past and present coexist.

Historical Context and Urban Micro-Regeneration: Situated on the site of the historic Hanzhong Post Office, the block’s overall renovation established a tone of “restoring the old as it was.” Robust materials like black concrete and weathered steel interweave with the remnants of the historic structure. As the interior designers, TWO² Design sought to create more than just an architectural extension; we envisioned an in-depth dialogue regarding “Time, Traces, and Rebirth.”

All modified openings are fitted with galvanized iron canopies, utilizing a contemporary industrial syntax to respond to the architectural textures of a bygone era. Eschewing complex ornamentation, we utilized plain concrete screed for the flooring. This allows the ground texture to recede into the background, providing a neutral stage for the vintage atmosphere. The entrance boldly features terrazzo with colored aggregates. This material, imbued with collective memory yet vibrant in tone, serves as the perfect transition between the old and the new.

Balancing with Soft Media: Robust materials require soft counterparts for equilibrium. We suspended kraft paper art installations alongside the black concrete staircase. Their natural texture, illuminated by vintage lighting, resembles a frozen waterfall of light and shadow, softening the spatial austerity and infusing the industrial core with a touch of poetry.

The “Black Box” in History: A strategy of “Heterogeneous Embedding” was adopted for functional zoning. The central bar is defined as a pure “black box,” recessed directly beneath the mottled brick walls. This creates an intense visual tension between modern materiality and the weathered red bricks, accentuating the beauty of time through absolute modernity.

The renovation of QIOBAN Bistro represents a restrained yet powerful modern intervention by TWO² Design. By preserving the raw beauty shaped by time and using new materials as “catalysts,” we have allowed the historic building to breathe again within a contemporary context, presenting a unique quality that is both vintage and avant-garde.

MORE PHOTOS