The Sky Yards Hotel anchors a swath of unfinished industrial sprawl in Jiaozuo, China. Despite its unusual location, the design maximizes the views of the nearby Taihang Mountain range, whose majesty informed Domain Architects' design. All 48 accommodations, for example, feature glass doors that lead to spacious balconies framing the vistas through a curvature that blocks out the undeveloped landscape below. "We made every effort to ensure the view of the sky and the mountain became the sole focus of the rooms," says firm founder Xu Xiaomeng. "It's far away from the mountain, but the view makes it look much closer. The nuanced spatial experience leads to a poetic and pacifying atmosphere." Home to a restaurant, banquet hall, and swimming pools, the hotel greets visitors with a sloped-or lifted-entry lawn, with the building serving as an abstracted embodiment of the mountain it echoes. "Using a very simple and consistent method, we transformed the disadvantage of the site into a moving and distinctive experience," he adds.
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