Cement encaustic tiles, renowned for their decorative features, are ideal for both floor paving and wall adornment. Despite their unassuming appearance, each tile crafted by Nanchow undergoes an intricate 13-step process. Currently, we employ the superior Aalborg White cement in production, underscoring the significance of material selection for ongoing quality improvement.
The history of handmade encaustic cement tiles spans nearly 200 years, originating from the Mediterranean to Southeast Asia and later introduced to China by overseas Chinese. China's first private encaustic cement tile factory, established in 1921 on Gulangyu Island in Xiamen, marked a turning point. Encaustic cement tiles became the favored choice for upper-class buildings like villas and hotels, gaining popularity in households. Remarkably, even today, historic structures along China's coast preserve tiles laid decades ago, attesting to their century-long durability.
Nanchow builds on traditional craftsmanship, persistently exploring and redefining the contemporary significance of these tiles in spatial design. Our team integrates exploration and reflection in design, craftsmanship, and modern spatial applications. Collaborations with artists and design companies, including projects like the Four Seasons Hotel in Kuwait, III VIVINIKO, Guangzhou Suiji Courtyard, Shanghai Yingchuan Jilu, Beijing Joy City, and Xiamen Lin's Mansion Hotel, aim to impart new aesthetic and artistic values to encaustic cement tiles.
The first private encaustic cement tile factory established in 1921 on Gulangyu Island in Xiamen, China
III VIVINIKO Fashion Store
III VIVINIKO, with the brand concept of "simple freshness," revamped its new store's spatial design by reducing unnecessary colors. The customized encaustic cement tiles from Nanchow, when applied to the floor, depart from the traditional square continuity, creating a large area of pure white combined with lines. This minimalist approach adds freedom, making the overall space more lightweight and gentle.
Project Type: Public Space
Design Firm: Devolution Architecture
Project Location: III VIVINIKO Chengdu IFS Store
Installation Date: September 2021
Tile Type: Customized by the Designer
Space Photography: by Xiaodong Xu of XDstudio
D.UNION Coffee Shop
The D.UNION coffee space in Dongguan features a natural color palette, a row of floor-to-ceiling windows for a spacious and elegantly simple ambiance. The coffee preparation area is adorned with handmade encaustic cement tiles from Nanchow in a soft and warm white tone, complementing wooden furniture to reconstruct the spatial visual relationship, presenting an independent yet unified sense of hierarchy, creating a light, warm, and comforting atmosphere.
Project Type: Public Space
Project Location: D.UNION Coffee Shop Songshan Lake, Dongguan
Tile Type: NH0581
Space Photography: by Existence Architecture
Shanghai Yingchuan Jilu Rehabilitation & Renovation
Yingchuan Jilu, established in 1907, stands as a typical representation of early Shikumen residences. Enduring a century of changes, the building underwent recommended protective restoration. Handcrafted cement tiles from Nanchow cement tiles were chosen for flooring, replacing the unique patterned and warmly colored mosaic tiles. Through photography, color extraction, meticulous coloring, cutting, assembly, and installation maintenance, the replication of the tiles was successfully achieved. Cement tiles, a modern interpretation of traditional craftsmanship, showcase Yingchuan Jilu's historical transformation, paying homage to tradition and history.
Project Location: Shanghai
Completion Year: 2020
Tile Type: Customized
Shanghai Diary Fashion Store
Shanghai Diary Fashion Store deliberately integrates elegance into the everyday, with a small space featuring pink folds and white relief ginkgo leaves from Nanchow handcrafted cement tiles. The design, modern and fashionable, ensures practicality while maintaining a minimalist appearance, offering a visually striking experience.
Project Type: Public Space
Design Firm: Youmu Architecture Design
Project Location: Shanghai
Completion Month: December 2019
Tile Type: ND0060
Suzhou Renheng Cang Street Residence Garden
Renheng Cang Street Residence Garden, a space in Suzhou connecting the past and future, blending technology and art. Painstakingly restoring every detail of the century-old western-style house, the ground is adorned with handcrafted cement tiles designed by Nanchow, harmonizing with other elements in the space to create a poetic ambiance of renewed nostalgia. Interpreting Suzhou's traditional aesthetics while preserving ancient memories, the project rejuvenates the ancient city.
Project Type: Public Space
Design Firm: Horizon Line Design
Project Location: Suzhou
Completion Month: August 2020
Tile Type: Customized
VVG Taizhong Theater & Concert, 5F
Taizhong Theater & Concert Hall in Taiwan is a distinctive large-scale public performance space with a grand theater, mid-sized theater, and small experimental theater, accommodating approximately three thousand people. In 2016, VVG Play Group established its presence in the Theater & Concert Hall, introducing "VVG Play " across the first, fifth, and sixth floors. Spaces like "Playful Learning," "Playful Metrics," "Books Play," "Food Play," and "Beer Play" were crafted. Notably, the "Food Play" restaurant on the fifth floor features Nanchow handcrafted cement tiles in the dining area.
Designers opted for a mix of cement tiles with different patterns, carefully combining them to create a rich yet organized floor pattern, reminiscent of the grand and splendid stage settings complementing extraordinary operas. Handcrafted cement tiles, a material proven to withstand the test of time for a century, offer unique expressions in different eras. From dining tables to floors, from taste buds to vision, they contribute to realizing the imagination of a beautiful life.
Project Type: Public Space
Client: VVG Group
Completion Month: October 2016
Tile Type: Customized
Zhenze West Slope
Zhenze West Slope, transformed from local ancient architecture, features meticulously designed layouts and soft furnishings, embodying the relaxed charm of a Jiangnan ancient town. Vintage tiles in shades of blue and orange adorn the guest rooms, infusing a lively modern touch into the originally quaint and elegant bedrooms. The combination of richness and delicacy, the blend of ancient and modern, creates a romantic and cozy retreat for travelers.
Project Type: Public Space
Project Location: Suzhou
Completion Month: April 2021
Tile Types: NH0750, NH0250
Suiji Courtyard
Suiji Courtyard serves as both an aesthetic enclave and a brand curating beautiful living spaces and items. The design aims to showcase the aesthetic essence of life, presenting the concept of "Suiji Home." Drawing inspiration from traditional Chinese culture, the space features original wood and stone, with handmade vintage cement tiles from Nanchow, expressing reverence for history and tradition. The combination of tiles, ancient roots, and geometric elements achieves a harmonious balance, subtly infusing the Oriental aesthetic into craftsmanship, materials, and color choices, outlining the texture of Oriental aesthetics in modern life.
Project Type: Public Space
Design Firm: Suiyue Design
Project Location: Guangzhou
Installation Date: September 2021
Tile Types: NH0731, NH0580
Area: 130 square meters
Hilton Guangzhou
Hilton Garden Inn Guangzhou Tianhe Dinglong is the first Hilton-branded hotel in Guangzhou. The space design seamlessly integrates regional cultural elements, combining classic Guangzhou charm with European garden style. The Flower Taste Buffet Restaurant features a modern and elegant design with a touch of traditional elements like the Xiguan style roof and 1980s style ice room booths, incorporating Nanchow cement tiles. The open kitchen, along with the refreshing encaustic cement tiles, creates a bright, modern, and stylish atmosphere.
Project Type: Public Space
Project Name: Hilton Garden Inn Guangzhou Tianhe Dinglong
Location: Guangzhou
Tile Type: NH0166
Seasons Hotel Kuwait
In Dai Forni Italian restaurant at Four Seasons Hotel Kuwait, Kokaistudios adopts a fire themed design concept. Dark mixed Nanchow cement tiles are laid in the operation area with a central copper stove, maintaining an open connection between the operation and dining areas while offering a distinct visual appeal. The cement tiles and copper stove form a prominent presence in the space, seamlessly blending with materials like stone and wood.
Project Type: Public Space
Project Name: Four Seasons Hotel Kuwait
Design Firm: Kokaistudios
Location: Kuwait
Tile Type: Customized
Let'say COFFEE Shenzhen Store
Let'say COFFEE+ is a cafe in Shenzhen Bay Ecological Science and Technology Park. The space design, incorporating life aesthetics, features an imported blue high density panel with a "World Coffee Map" and a 15-meter panoramic triptych in various colors, creating a gradient visual effect. Complementing the main color tone of the space, the floor is adorned with two patterns of Nanchow encaustic cement tiles. One pattern includes four color variations arranged in a specific manner, presenting a natural gradient effect and enriching the spatial visual hierarchy.
Project Type: Public Space
Project Name: Let'say COFFEE+ Café
Location: Shenzhen
Tile Types: NH0660, NH0661, NH0662, NH0663
Handmade cement tiles are more than just a material to us; we aim to enhance their aesthetic value through meticulous craftsmanship and a contemporary sense of beauty. We anticipant the encaustic cement tiles to continue flourishing in our era, blending traditional craftsmanship with modern aesthetics.
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Authors
Lin Yuming
He has been engaged in design since 1999 and founded the brand Nanchow in Xiamen, China in 2012. In the same year, he started researching the production process of traditional cement tiles from scratch, and after 4 years of continuous research and development, he regained the complete production process of traditional cement tiles. He hopes that Nanchow can take a step forward on the basis of traditional craftsmanship, reinterpret cement tiles with new era concepts and aesthetics, and strive to continuously improve the quality of cement tiles and endow them with new aesthetic value. His work "ZENEN" won the "EDIDA2021 Global Best Floor Decoration Design Award".
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