2014 BOY Winner: Foreign Hotel

The capital of Henan province, approximately halfway between Shanghai and Beijing, has a rich imperial history. Conscious of creating a landmark to honor that legacy, Interior Design Hall of Fame members Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu thought of this hotel as a repository of references to Henan’s natural characteristics and cultural achievements. “The archive seemed the one metaphor that could carry through all aspects of our design, from building to interior to finish to artwork,” Neri explains.

On a more literal level, the 25-story tower stacks cantilevered boxes with fronts in glass tinted shades of green and sides in polymer-coated aluminum perforated in a pattern that recalls local wild roses, writ large. Once inside, having passed beneath a pair of floating canopies that rest on bronze poles, guests encounter a skylit central atrium with polished sandstone walls, horizontally striped like the sedimentary rock in nearby Buddhist caves, and a magical profusion of glass pendant fixtures. 

Above the five-story public podium, 350 guest rooms offer a contrast of dark against light. Wainscoting is stained oak, while subway-tiled bathrooms also feature glass etched to repeat the exterior’s rose pattern.

Project Team: Alex Mok; Lina Hsieh Lee; Louise Ma; Jacqueline Min; Peter Eland; Christina Luk; Victor Ung; Eva Wieland; Zara Wang; Andrew Roman; Windy Zhang; Ni Duan; Meng Gong; Amy Hu; Begonia Sebastian; Anne Mu; Erika Lanselle; Debby Haepers; Cai Chun Yan; Dagmar Niecke; Nelly Yang; Briar Hickling; Dirk Weiblen; Wang Xiang; Jadesupa Pittasporn; Sophia Wang; Chi Chiu; Joseph Lee; Singeyong Pham; Shelley Gabriel; Arnau Baril; Talitha Liu; Christine Neri; Siwei Park; Evelyn Chiu; Poeng Litien; Zhou Hao; Brian Lo; Zhao Yun; Jean-Philippe Bonzon; Chen Xiaowen; Nicholas Faradet; Li Ximi.