Natatorium, Jiangwan Sports Complex, Shanghai

This is the amazing entrance to the natatorium at the Jiangwan Sports Complex.

The decorative arch is repeated inside and at the nearby Municipal stadium. Below is a closer view of the natatorium entrance showing the detail, not only in the arch, but also in the metal doorway.

Astrid, Shanghai

Astrid is one of my favourite buildings in Shanghai.

That amazing decorative element is featured on the cover of Shanghai Art Deco by Deke Erh and Tess Johnston and I was pleased to catch it in its best light.

Both the main entrance and side entrance have their own stunning decoration as well.

And, yes, the dog does have orange ears and a purple tail. As if that isn't enough (s)he's wearing a red and white shirt, blue jeans and four white boots.

But back to the building. Astrid was completed in 1933 and was designed by W Livin-Goldstaedt.

Reference:
Shanghai Art Deco by Deke Erh and Tess Johnston

Le Cercle Sportif Français, Shanghai

In 1922 Alexandre Léonard and Paul Veysseyre, working freelance for the Shanghai firm of Ledreux, Minutti & Cie, designed a new building for the Cercle Sportif Français (CSF). Rather than continue their freelance arrangement the two young French architects decided to form their own company, A Léonard & P Veysseyre à Shanghai. Ledreux & Minutti took legal action to retain the CSF drawings but ultimately Léonard & Veysseyre were declared the rightful owners of the project design. Construction began in December 1923 continuing through to 1926.

The club wound up its membership in 1955 when it was clear that there was no place for such an institution in Mao Zedong's China. In any case private ownership of property had been made illegal the previous year and shortly after the CSF closed its accounts the building was taken over by the authorities.

It's not known how the CSF survived the worst of the Cultural Revolution but somehow it did and today the clubhouse forms part of the Okura Garden Hotel. While many areas of the old CSF have been altered and found new uses within the hotel, the magnificent oval-shaped ballroom is virtually unchanged.

Undoubtedly the most striking feature of the space is the enormous multi-coloured light but there are many other deco features around the room.

The 1st floor landing, just outside the ballroom, also boasts a wealth of deco features including nude female figures and geometric patterns on the columns.

Reference:
Shanghai's Art Deco Master: Paul Veysseyre's Architecture in the French Concession by Spencer Dodington & Charles Lagrange

Villas Hotel, Shanghai

It says 1931 in large numerals above one of the two main entrances to the Villas Hotel in Shanghai.  The heritage plaque on the building is less definite.  It says the building, a company building was built about the 1930s of reinforced concrete in modern style.

As you can see the hotel has a horizontal band of decoration between the ground floor and the first floor with vertical element in the centre.

And note the small concrete balconies with a wave motif.

Inside, the foyer is bright and airy leading to ...

... corridor with lifts to the upper floors and ...

... and perhaps some guest rooms.

Throughout the public areas on the ground floor there are exquisite lights and Art Deco details. Whether these are original, restored or new is difficult to tell.

Art Deco Weekend 2, Shanghai

Last weekend I was in China for Historic Shanghai's Art Deco Weekend 2.

Both days consisted of presentations and lunch at the former Chinese YMCA (now the Metropolo Hotel) followed by a two-hour walking tour in the afternoon.

Entrance, former Chinese YMCA, Shanghai (Poy Gum Lee, 1934)

Saturday commenced with the keynote address on Historic Preservation in Shanghai by Professor Ruan Yisan from Tongji University.   Professor Ruan's presentation was passionate and amusing as he relayed some of his key preservation successes since the early 1980s.  Often pitted against local mayors and government officials he has been threatened with jail but continues to fight for the adoption of master plans for the preservation and re-development of important historic areas.

Stairs, former Chinese YMCA, Shanghai (Poy Gum Lee, 1934)

The second presentation of the morning was by Virag Csejdy on Laszlo Hudec: The Race Course Buildings.  Virag is a relative of Hudec and is curator at the Hudec Heritage Project.  Her talk covered  Hudec's journey from Hungary to Shanghai via time as a Russian prisoner of war during WWI before focusing on three key Shanghai Hudec buildings - Moore Memorial Methodist Church (1931), Park Hotel (1934) and Grand Theater (1933).

Wing On Department Store, Shanghai (Elliott Hazzard, 1933)

The walking tour took us around the former Shanghai Race Course.  Gambling was banned on Mainland China in 1949 and the former race course is now the People's Park.  The tour included a school, a hospital, Shanghai lane houses, some large Deco department stores in Nanjing Road East and the Hudec buildings from Virag Csejdy morning presentation.

Foyer, Grand Theater, Shanghai (Laszlo Hudec, 1933)

Sunday's first presentation looked at Shanghai Art Deco Design.  Presented by Dr Karolina Pawlik of University of Silesia/Shanghai University it compared and contrasted how Western artists and Chinese artists portrayed China during the Deco period.

This was followed by Shanghai's Art Deco Nightclubs by Dr Andrew Field, author of Shanghai's Dancing World.  Andrew's presentation focused on Shanghai's most luxurious nightclub of the 1930s, the Paramount Ballroom (1933), designed by S C Young.

Paramount Ballroom (S C Young, 1933)

After lunch a bus dropped us off at the Paramount Ballroom for the start of  our walking tour along Bubbling Well Road (now Nanjing Road West).  The tour included many apartment blocks and a couple of stand-out Deco mansions.

Woo Villa (Laszlo Hudec, 1938)

Woo Villa, now Shanghai Urban Planning and Design Research Institute was designed in 1938 by Laszlo Hudec and the Pei Mansion which was built in 1934 and is now an hotel.

Pei Mansion (1934)

From my point of view, Art Deco Weekend 2 was a great success.  I learnt a lot and saw many buildings that I hadn't seen before.

For Historic Shanghai it was part of their preparations for the Shanghai World Congress on Art Deco, 2-6 November 2015.  I helped with those preparations by getting lost at the third building on the first walking tour.  You know, I just had one more picture to take.   I was reunited with the group at the next building so everything was OK.  Anyway we all paid more attention after that and I don't think anyone else got lost over the weekend.

For more information on next year's World Congress you can visit the Shanghai Art Deco website.

Apartments, Shanghai

Interesting 1930s apartments in the former French Concession area of Shanghai. I wish I'd got a better picture of the panel under the upper window.

Peace Hotel, Shanghai

Apartments in Shanghai

Deco apartments in Changle Road, Shanghai.

Magy Apartments, Shanghai

The Magy Apartments in West Fuxing Rd, Shanghai. There are many corner apartment buildings from the deco era in Shanghai. The Magy Apartments were built in 1936.

On quite a few of those buildings there are plaques similar to the one for Magy. They are issued by the local municipality and as you can see they recognise the building has having some heritage value but it doesn't mean that it is protected in any way. Some are protected, but that important element is usually not included in the English translation.

My friends at Historic Shanghai showed me the important Chinese character that means the building is protected but it didn't stick. Maybe next time I'll pay more attention!

The Bund, Shanghai

This is a nice section of The Bund in Shanghai. The building in the centre with the clock towers the Customs House. To the left of that is the dome of the The Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank while on this side there is a lovely little white deco building, the former Bank of Communications. Closest to the camera is another bank building, the Central China Bank. Finally sitting in the background is the modern Bund Financial Centre with it's illuminated crown.

A Shanghai Villa

A bonus from our impromptu walk with Shanghai Art Deco was getting behind the high wall and just as high gate to see this Shanghai villa. It's now used as offices and is a bit unloved but the bare bones are there and it could be fabulous again.

This is the view of the front of the villa from the private garden but the entrance on the side of the building next to the driveway is fabulous.

I love this door.

The closer you look the better it gets and check out the terrazzo star in the circular entrance hall.

Amyron Apartments, Shanghai

This handsome apartment block in Gao'an Road, Shanghai was built in 1941, designed by Leonard, Veysseyre & Kruze.

One of the architects, Alexander Leonard lived in the block for a time and his initials are incorporated into the terrazzo floor inside the front entrance.

Apartments, Shanghai

A three-storey block of flats in Shanghai with nice metalwork grills on the interior doors.