Adaptive Reuse of Vernacular House in Dafeng Village, Dongguan

In Dafeng Village, on the periphery of central Dongguan, a vernacular house has been adaptively reused by CM Design, a project that responds to the village's long history dating back to 1161 AD during the Southern Song Dynasty. The village's residential architecture has undergone significant transformations due to urbanization and industrialization, shifting from owner-occupied homes to rental properties, which altered spatial design priorities from family needs to economic capacity. This shift led to two trends: demolition of old houses to build multi-story buildings, and abandonment of old village homes for urban commercial housing. The project by CM Design addresses these changes by preserving and reinterpreting the vernacular architecture, offering a model for cultural heritage conservation within rapid urban development. The design emphasizes the 'echoes of home,' integrating traditional elements with contemporary needs, and serves as a case study in adaptive reuse in the context of China's urbanization.