Far Beyond the Banks of the Yellow River and If It Were Not So
Chinese script raises writing to an art form. Chicagoans Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill Architecture’s bronze façade superframe elevates elevation to sculpture. Its eye catching appearance instantly catapulted the Waldorf Astoria to the top of Beijing’s galaxy of five star hotels upon opening in 2014. The architecture never looks better than when all aglow at sunrise and sunset in winter. A shining beacon. Nine bedroom floors have rows of full height rectangular bay windows set into a grid. The bay windows are not uniformly placed but rather are tuned to differing angles and orientations to maximise outlook and natural light penetration. Gordon calls this concept a “compound eye”.
Grey granite as a background material recalls the charcoal bricks of historic hutongs and creates a strong backdrop to the superframe. Standalone corner fins are an elegant solution to housing utilities. The bronze will change colour as it ages – a fitting metaphor for the ever evolving city and its constant flow of frenetic stimuli. The first three levels of the hotel are visually treated as one super plinth: full height louvred glazed panels are uniformly divided by the vertical components of the superframe. This is literally transparent architecture. The Hutong Courtyard behind the 12 storey 170 bedroom main block was designed by Ma Bingjian, the Director of the Beijing Ancient Architecture Design Institute. Inspired by Ming architecture, it provides more luxurious accommodation.
Michael Krauze, Director of Operations at the Waldorf Astoria Beijing, welcomes guests: “We offer a sanctuary just steps from the Forbidden City where Beijing’s superior heritage meets Waldorf’s legendary elegance. Every space is a journey that blends the ancient soul of the Capital with contemporary sophistication. A sincere and elegant service is deeply rooted in the cultural fabric of the city. Our interiors designed by Yabu Pushelburg balance bold contrast with timeless tradition. Every detail reflects exquisite craftmanship creating an atmosphere of refinement. This philosophy extends into every element of our service from checkin to the care of personal concierges, we’re always ensuring every detail is seamlessly arranged.”
Anyhoo, that’s the formalities over. What’s that blast of Channel V music coming from corner Suite 918 on the ninth floor? High above St Joseph’s Church and The Gundam Base on Wangfujing Avenue and Beijing Yintai Jixiang Office Building on Ganju Hutong and Peet’s Coffee in the Macau Centre there’s a non stop party taking place. Lobby, makeup room, drawing room, bedroom, lobby, Aesop goodies filled marble bathroom … it’s like living in a multi compartmented silk and lacquered cabinet. There’s the temptation lurking to never leave best in class Suite 918. By day five bay windows frame the city; by night five bay windows frame the party. The viewer becomes the viewed.
Who needs to venture out to an art gallery when you’re staying in the Waldorf? One of the many strikingly original important artworks hangs in the ground floor Long Gallery – an interior boulevard of desire. A sign next to Abandoning the Precision of Shape by Liu Xiaodong states, “A stunningly evocative oil on canvas painting of the Forbidden City, evoking a timeless dimension where the viewer of the piece is requested to think about the image’s common sentiment in our memory and to question the way we view the outside world.” The artist emerged as a leading figure in 1990s Chinese Neo Realism and has continued to successfully tread the line between figurative and conceptual art ever since.
The Palace Servant by Ling Jian is a powerful showstopper at the end of the Long Gallery. An oil and acrylic painting of an outsized androgynous face has piercing eyes and wedding dress red lips pursed ready to speak and more. In Peacock Alley – a lounge named after the walkway between the original Waldorf and Astoria Hotels – Scattered Aesthetic and Concrete Depth by Chi Peng is a mixed media abstract combining craft and art telling the history of painting on materials other than canvas. An ink on ice paper artwork hangs in the entrance foyer: the two twin teacups and saucers of Shao Fan’s Integrated with the Universe speak of the Taoist concept of being integrated with this world. In a first floor lobby, a cluster of vitrines display Waling Artist in the Wild by Yang Maoyuan. Using classical marble busts as prototypes, he rounds off features and polishes the edges of heads in a conversation about the Chinese philosophy of beauty and harmony.
An absolutely flawless effortless seamless peerless airport to car to suite journey is partly to blame for us not ever wanting to leave. Suave concierges in black and tan uniform rush to open car doors, entrance foyer doors, lift doors, suite doors and later come laden with cake and fruit and bear buddies to welcome in the night. Sunrise, sunset, swiftly fly the hours, seedlings turn overnight to sunflowers, blossoming even as they gaze.
Leave the suite leave the suite leave the suite. Ok, but only for breakfasting downstairs in Brasserie 1893. A Bear Buddy’s Breakfast Menu on our table lists Golden Toast Boats (buttered toast served with maple syrup and berry cream), Crispy Fried Double Layer Milk Roll (served with chocolate sauce, shredded coconut and roasted pistachio) and Dragon Onion Rings. Tempting but nothing beats Tofu Pudding (yellow fungus and egg sauce, spring onion, chilli oil) and Fried Dough Sticks with Soy Milk. That, plus hawthorn strip and snow leopard melon cubes. Red Velvet Croissant (looks like it’s wrapped in streaky bacon outside; burst with cream inside), celery and grapefruit juice, and coffee with sugar crystals of course round off the morning’s sojourn. Sino French cuisine at its finest. This is our winter of content.
Zijin Mansion is the Michelin starred restaurant in our hotel but that’s another story on another storey.
