02.3 the restoration

SHANGHAI’S AND CHINA’S LANDMARK

The southern building of the Peace Hotel was designated and published as one of four batches of cultural sites put under state protection, with preservation class II, on the 26th of November 1996.

The specific preservation contents, based on the spirit of the symposium held by the Shanghai Cultural Heritage Administration Committee on the 9th of November 2007, were determined as follows:

“a. The preservation of the external facade mainly concentrates on the east and north facades, other facades shall be regarded as next priority for preservation.

b. The grand lobby on the ground floor and the former dining hall at the east part within the building must be completely preserved.

c. The engraved wooden-stairs and the staircase in the middle part of the building must be preserved based on the strict requirements.

d. The private dining room on the fifth floor must be preserved with its original structure and appearance.”

In addition, all attached structures, which had been built without authorized approval in past years, such as the coffee house built on the roof, were to be dismantled. The partial original architecture plans and spatial patterns at the west side on the first floor were to be rehabilitated, and the west side of the roof surroundings for the building rectified. The roof towers were also to be restored, based on their original appearance in the historical record.

Led by Swatch Group, the restoration of the historic Palace Hotel – later Peace Hotel South Building – is now complete. The ground floor retail environment opened in May 2010, and in April 2011 The Swatch Art Peace Hotel opened its doors to the first guest artists to live and work in dedicated apartments and workshops.