Featuring an outdoor lifestyle, WILD BACK is nestled between the serene West Lake and the lively city, offering a different realm for patrons. The natural elements of stones, grassy slopes, and mountains come together to create a wilderness oasis. Exploring the untouched camping ground, visitors will feel like embarking on an exciting hiking trip, filled with anticipation and discovery.
City Outdoor, rediscover the wildness of nature
Located on the front street of the commercial complex Huanglong World Trade Center, WILD BACK covers an area of 2,000 square meters, establishing itself as a new outdoor landmark in Hangzhou. With its wide range of diverse outdoor lifestyle experiences such as food, equipment, and activities, WILD BACK embraces innovative business models that are future-proof and it strives to encourage people to connect with nature and awaken their inner selves.
SNOW PEAK, a renowned Japanese brand in the outdoor industry, has established an outdoor equipment store in this location. SNOW PEAK’s mission to foster a reconnection with nature and humanity aligns perfectly with WILD BACK’s advocacy for urban nature. Together, these two brands create a sense of community with the friendly value and identity of embracing the natural world.
PIG DESIGN has successfully completed the landscape, interior, and furniture design for the GRILL&EATERY Western Restaurant of WILD BACK, which continues the outdoor spirit of SNOW PEAK and the wilderness theme of WILD BACK. The project showcases a unique shift in design, yet it stays true to PIG’s previous creations by incorporating nature as a theme.
GRILL&EATERY of WILD BACK strives to establish an unspoiled natural haven within the urban landscape and seeks to make necessary adjustments to the overly refined and polished aspects of modern living. The wilderness represents an unaltered state, showcasing the true essence of nature. It is a realm brimming with challenges and mysteries, offering profound significance to life’s journey.
Moreover, charcoal grilling offers a unique dining experience that takes people back to the original relationship between humans and fire. The “outdoor” has been regarded as an aesthetic proposition beyond its functions in this project. When dining in a restaurant surrounded by nature, one can truly feel a sense of symbiosis with the environment. The overall design of the project aims to create a narrative of dining in the wilderness.
Naturally growing, more randomness less plan
The design’s flexibility is fused into commercial buildings, and the inclusive public courtyards imbue new meaning into the space, making it a micro-landscape that gently transitions between the building and the city. The pavilion and corridor area resemble the rain-sheltering eaves one might come across while exploring the outdoors. The 1.4-meter extension facilitates a gradual and gentle introduction of both rain and sunlight.
Folding windows offer a seamless transition between the indoors and outdoors, while also allowing for natural regulation of the indoor microclimate with the changing seasons. In WILD BACK, the interior features large rocks resembling cliffs, with branches extending from the sides. The branches and leaves are densely covered with foliage at random, creating a vibrant and lively atmosphere in a small area.
A sense of roughness, fueled for design
The ruggedness of the environment enables us to unleash our vitality and foster genuine connections. WILD BACK satisfies the longing for the outdoors and provides an opportunity to reconnect with nature and simplicity, away from the complexities of identity and past experiences. Embracing discomfort in nature allows us to appreciate true comfort.
By avoiding superficial mediocrity and embracing the freedom of “undefined” design, PIG DESIGN strived to break down barriers of social class and recognition. This “cross-over” approach could also bring people together through cross-over resonance, fostering a sense of unity. By avoiding redundant lines and exaggerated shapes, PIG DESIGN has skillfully utilized utensils to create subtle touches, objects, and perceptions.
This approach has allowed them to divide and define the space, presenting the material in its most authentic and optimal state. Brand upgrading has the potential to enhance the value of a company. However, the challenge lies in the form of effectively connecting with and captivating consumers through brand space.
PIG DESIGN proposes that the success of brand space is ultimately determined by individuals’ experiences, intuition, creativity, and imagination. WILD BACK emphasizes the innate human desire to connect with nature and cohabitation, thus empowering sustainable development. Source by PIG DESIGN.
- Location: Hangzhou, China
- Architect: PIG DESIGN
- Chief designer: Wenqiang
- Design team: Yang Zhiwei, Shen Taotao
- Lighting design: Yaank
- Furniture design: PIG DESIGN
- Props design: Zhejiang Deyao Metal Products Co., Ltd.
- Logo production: Jump Time Signage
- Construction firm: Hangzhou Dianchang Decoration Design Engineering Co., Ltd.
- Client: Hangzhou Cuihuhan Investment Co., Ltd.
- Main materials: Stone, exposed aggregate, recycled wood board, metal, paint
- Area: 476 m2
- Completion time: August 2023
- Photographs: Qi Shuoqian, Courtesy of PIG DESIGN
