Gulao Water Town Cultural Ecotourism Resort Guest Center

The Gulaoshui Township Cultural and Ecological Tourism Resort Guest Center is located by the beautiful Xi River in Jiangmen, famous for its dense water networks and (walled mounds) natural texture. As the starting point of the entire water township ecological area, the guest center aims to inherit the regional ecological character and revitalize the image of the water village. The design strategy extracts local genes from Gulaoshui's indigenous elements, seeking the fundamental perception of a water town: pure, natural, and ecologically original. The design concept is inspired by the boat experience through lotus-lined waterways on a hot summer day, watching wind move the lotus leaves and feeling the breeze on one's face. The guest center abstracts the folded texture of lotus leaves in three dimensions, creating public resting spaces where visitors can pause, gaze at the Xi River, and relax in meditation. Breaking the uniform quality of lotus leaves, organic trimming based on site landscape value and visual focus creates a regular yet playful space. The center comprises three distinct scales: upper viewing area, middle resting area, and lower exhibition area. The exterior is simple and clear, with changing views as one walks. The roof uses local natural hemp rope for sun shading, presenting regional ecological materials in a modern suspended form while enhancing the rooftop viewing experience and making the building itself a scenic attraction. The design aims to create a core space for meditation and quiet reflection, with sightlines pulling upward from bottom to top and from heavy to light, making viewers forget the noise of the outside world and focus on the pure vision before them. The project uses local traditional materials to interpret a new architectural form, creating a new generation of water-town living room that inherits regional culture, respects nature, and looks to the future.