CCD (Cheng Chung Design)

ONE CENTRAL PARK is deeply rooted in the fabric of Shanghai’s old city — a silent witness to seven centuries of cultural and urban evolution. Revered as the cradle of Haipai culture, this historical neighborhood has long stood as a vital crossroads of East-West cultural exchange, from the Yuan Dynasty to the flourishing port era.
The project’s cross-temporal architectural wisdom is vividly embodied in a warm, timeworn red — a hue distilled from the fading terracotta tiles of historic Shanghai-style villas, their distinctive brick-red tones mellowed by the passage of time. Distilled from the city’s memory, this chromatic legacy conjures both the glamour of 1930s cosmopolitan Shanghai and the everyday warmth within Shikumen alleyways.
In conceiving the interiors, CCD reinterprets this historically resonant red through a contemporary design language. From the moment one steps into the entrance foyer, a chromatic narrative begins to unfold — inviting every visitor into a poetic dialogue with the golden era of Haipai culture.
Within a modern skyscraper, CCD curates a spatial journey woven from light and shadow, which feels like an immersive passage through time. At the elevator hall, copper cladding gently sweeps from walls to ceiling, evoking the graceful diffusion of ink across a scroll. The subdued ambience hushes the city’s clamor, rendering philosopher Zhou Guoping’s vision of “rich tranquility” into a physical, contemplative experience.

The moment the door opens, the art installation “Metamorphosis” emerges like a cocoon of light suspended in a fissure of time. Handwoven by 15 artisans using ramie threads, it unfolds as a fluid epic of transformation. Co-created by CCD founder Joe Cheng and artist Huang Wanbing, the piece took over a month to complete, capturing the moment of a silkworm cocoon’s metamorphosis through an intricate weaving of metal frames and natural fibers. Stretching across the elevator hall, model display area, and urban lounge, it composes a trio of time, craft, and vitality — where natural materials encounter digital fabrication, and historic context undergoes transformative rebirth.

The model display area reawakens the city’s memory through an immersive narrative in shades of red. Red travertine, textured paint, and bricks sweep across the space, engaging in a continuous dialogue with red-hued old Shanghai villas long etched into the city’s fabric. Enveloped in unified a brick-red palette, the space becomes a vessel where bygone dreams are gently rekindled.

CCD skillfully infuses the real estate sales center with the warmth of daily life and aesthetic refinement. A professional-grade kitchen crafted from copper and red travertine evokes the intimacy of a private residence, inviting visitors to envision future moments of everyday life. Here, the experience moves beyond real estate display or transaction, unfolding a shared vision of lifestyle.
What truly matters in the old neighborhood? Are the red brick walls essential? Questions of presence and absence, being and not being, are subtly embedded in the narrative, lending the space a sense of interpretive transparency. Hand-fired red bricks, crafted with contemporary sensibility, are meticulously laid throughout, where the rhythm of solid and void orchestrates a contemplative conversation between past and present.

The west zone is a multifunctional space, integrating a bar, reception, and lounge areas. Through a contemporary design approach, CCD creates a sculptural fireplace as a visual anchor—imbuing the space with artistic resonance and fostering a quiet dialogue with the centerpiece artwork.
“The character and spirit of the horse have long been at the core of our design aspirations. A ‘horse’ leaps vividly within the space, yet soars beyond the mundane, carrying profound symbolic meaning,” says Joe Cheng.

The artwork “If I Were You” by artist Huang Cheng navigates shifting identities and perspectives, embodying philosophical reflections on humanity and injecting primal force into the space.

“We hope this space feels less like a real estate sales center and more like a social lounge for the city’s elite — evoking an afternoon tea in a historic villa of old Shanghai,” says Joe Cheng.
A space can be emotional, natural, and healing — defined by human intention. Thus, sensory design becomes a key methodology. An Oriental-style tea pavilion is introduced indoors, creating a garden-like journey that resonates with the future landscape vision of a “Cosmopolitan Garden.” Artistic screens integrate contemporary minimalism with traditional Eastern proportions, echoing the architectural ethos of “Chinese essence, Western techniques.”
Sogetsu Ikebana artist Xu Yanya joins this creative journey, curating rich indoor landscaping and floral art that breathes nature’s vitality into the space. In quiet resonance with the classical gardens of the old city, these elements subtly weave the refined elegance of Wu-Yue culture into contemporary everyday life.

Amber light flickers softly against the lattice windows of the side rooms, conjuring the tender memories of Shikumen’s bygone days, as if distant laughter of those returning home drifts through the alleys. Warm yellow lighting, layered with a palette of deep reds, envelops the space, gently transporting visitors from the metropolitan glamour of Shanghai to its cultural soul — touching the tranquility behind the splendor of the old city.
Even the restrooms are conceived with meticulous attention. The same red travertine used in public areas is sculpted into walls and countertops here, creating a strong sense of architecture. Vanity mirrors are subtly aligned to enrich visual interaction, with all else pared down in restrained simplicity. In mirrored reflections, time and space stretch into infinity—where reality meets illusion, and the present echoes the past.

Project information
Project name: ONE CENTRAL PARK, Shanghai
Project location: No.1600 Zhonghua Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai
Client: Shanghai Yalong Gucheng Real Estate Development Co., Ltd.
Interior design: CCD / Cheng Chung Design (HK)
Lighting design: CCD / Cheng Chung Design (HK)
Art consulting: CCD · WOWU Art Consultancy
Project area: 960 square meters
Completion time: December 2024
Photos: QIWEN PHOTOGRAPHY