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        <p><span>Duan Zhang de Courrèges: a </span><span>Sichuanese </span><span>in </span><span>St Barths </span></p>
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        <p><span>Duan Zhang de Courrèges was born in Chengdu (Sichuan, China). He studied fashion and design for nearly ten years in China, New York, and Paris. As a result, his style melds the wisdom and restraint of the Chinese scholar with a solid culture of contemporary Western design. For the past five years, design houses Saint Laurent and later Jacquemus have entrusted him with developing their home and décor lines. </span></p>
        <p><span>Duan arrived in France in 2013. That summer, he joined his French adoptive family on their vacation and discovered St Barth. He has returned to the island every year since. Two years later, his family asked Duan for decorative suggestions for BelAmour, a luxury one bedroom suite they were building atop a vertiginous cliff. His first recommendation was to go for an innovative range of mineral furniture by Paola Lenti. </span></p>
        <p><span>Duan&rsquo;s most impactful idea was to commission French designer Jean-Charles de Castelbajac to create a large fresco on the back wall of the villa. Castelbajac was on the island at the time, exhibiting his works at the legendary hotel Eden Rock - St Barths. Duan approached him and convinced him to come and see the construction site. The French designer loved the location and accepted the challenge. He returned to the finished villa the following December, becoming its first guest and creating a sparkling décor of colors and life. </span></p>
        <p><span>In 2019, when his family decided to rebuild their 30-year-old St Barth house from the ground up, Duan was tasked with designing the new villa. So, in collaboration with the architects </span></p>
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        <p><span>Johannes Zingerle and Mario Bélair, he chiseled for two years all the interior and exterior details of what is - after his Parisian apartment - his second complete realization: Maison Domingue. </span></p>
        <p><span>St Barth&rsquo;s new zoning code demands that new constructions look like rectangular pavilions topped with four-sloped roofs in the style of traditional Caribbean houses. Duan subtly worked on asymmetry and offset so that the buildings fit naturally into the slope of the land. Inspired by Feng Shui principles, he developed a system of protective walls to tame the wind that sweeps over Pointe Milou and transform it into a gentle breeze that constantly refreshes the living areas. Duan opted for pieces that would blend into the environment and wouldn&rsquo;t attract attention except for the simplicity of their lines. </span></p>
        <p><span>In St Barth, constraints exist for exterior and interior designs. Materials must have perfect resistance to corrosion, which is aggressive on the island. Duan selected furniture as if he was destining it to adorn the deck of a yacht. Wood, aluminum, and carbon were essential; stainless steel had to be of boat quality; all ordinary metals were prohibited. </span></p>
        <p><span>Above all, natural patterns and rhythms guided his selection. Thus, Duan opted for pieces that would blend into the environment and wouldn&rsquo;t attract attention except for the simplicity of their lines. He therefore created a comfortable and functional universe that does not obfuscate the true stars of the location: The views, the sea, and the light. </span></p>
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              <p><span>He paid particular attention to coverings from woods such as ash, spruce, walnut, and oak on the walls and movable panels to large slabs of light sandstone on the floor. Duan also used a palette of Carrara and Marquinia marbles in the bathrooms, mixing polished and matte finishes. A few marble panels are engraved with vertical streaks. </span></p>
              <p><span>Picking the right plants for the garden that runs along the patio&rsquo;s floating staircase was also a challenge. These plants must acclimatize to the salt and the wind while creating a soothing and resilient environment despite adverse conditions. The climate does not allow any unsuitable fantasy. </span></p>
              <p><span>The result is a clean, bright home, open to the ocean with its string of islets sketching out a Zen garden when the sea takes on silvery and then leaden hues in the evening. It gives off an impression of space, luminous perspectives, and transparencies. Luxury, but a luxury of infinite simplicity. </span></p>
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A Lesson In Simplicity

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