Peak House

Overlooking Dali's largest alpine lake, the design establishes a model for hilltop housing by addressing challenges in the Pan-Himalayan region: seasonal water scarcity, alpine plant adaptation, steep terrain, and budget constraints.

Commissioned by a renowned tribal architect, the landscape team worked to blend his houses with the native surroundings, ensuring ecological sensitivity and cultural authenticity. Rooted in the family's devotion to indigenous plants, ecologically rich gardens unfold across the steep slopes, interwoven with meandering swales and rain gardens that manage seasonal water flows.

Sensitive interventions protect the peak's ecology and create a tranquil retreat for the client's extended family and local friends.

Perched 2,710 meters high on Huoshan Mountain in Dali, Yunnan, the 8,600m² site embraces sweeping vistas of the region's largest alpine lake and endures severe drought during the Pan-Himalayan dry season. The client, a renowned Bai tribal architect, commissioned the landscape team to protect and enhance its natural beauty, addressing critical environmental challenges and honoring local culture.

Shaped by the monsoon climate, Huoshan Mountain suffers six months of water scarcity each year, challenging high-altitude residents. Rooted in local practice, villagers constructed concrete water cisterns, half-buried in the soil, to store rainwater for daily use and agricultural irrigation. The project preserves every cistern, sustaining their role in rainwater collection. They are also interwoven into the landscape as cultural heritage, reconnecting the community with its past.

Large earthenware jars are positioned at 20-meter intervals to provide emergency water for fire suppression during the dry season. Beyond their practical function, these jars are integrated as landscape elements, planted with aquatic species to invite appreciation, while simultaneously reminding visitors of the mountain's fragile climate and the ever-present risk of forest fire.

Across the terrain, a stone swale meanders through the landscape, designed to harness the force of seasonal stormwater. Its form expands into three intimate water gardens, slowing runoff while enriching the site with landscape features that merge utility and beauty. The 500m² green roof slows the rains, bringing nature upward to the upper floors, where greenery extends into thresholds, softening architecture and blurring the boundary between house and landscape. Together, these landscape elements embody resilience, ecological sensitivity, and cultural continuity.

The steep level change at the back of the house is resolved by a serpentine walled pathway, which serves as a retaining structure to negotiate the terrain. It also becomes a graceful passage, weaving together the back garden, the pine forest above, and the quiet thresholds beyond. Existing pine trees were carefully preserved, appearing to emerge spontaneously from the pathway's irregular stone paving and reinforcing the sense of natural integration. The stone walls are constructed from locally sourced materials and built by tribal mason workers, each strike and joint carrying the imprint of local craftsmanship. These details embody the memory of place, celebrating the community's skills and cultural heritage.

Rooted in the family's devotion to native plants and their vision of a landscape inseparable from its region, the design composition an indigenous living tapestry that unfolds with the seasons. The planting palette of Peak House draws upon native alpine species, carefully selected to maximize seasonal expression and support wildlife habitats, while also celebrating the edible qualities of fruits and herbs. An undulating meadow reflects the character of the alpine terrain, enriching the experience of place and deepening the site's resonance with its ecological context.

Beyond being a private residence, the Peak House becomes a magnet for community gathering. During festivals, the client invites longtime lakeside friends and neighbors to ascend to the Peak House, where they celebrate together, deepen their connection with nature, and carry forward cultural traditions.

• Liangjun Zhou — Lead Designer
• Ting Zhou — Lead Designer
• Caifu Song — Landscape Designer
• Chang Sun — Landscape Designer
• Dong Shi — Landscape Designer
• Xinyue Ma — Landscape Designer
• Zehao Chen — Landscape Designer
• Likang Ji — Landscape Designer
• Liping Chen — Landscape Designer
• Xinying Li (Intern) — Landscape Designer
• Ziyao Tang (Intern) — Landscape Designer
• BXD Studio — Architect
• Lijiang Chunxi Landscape Engineering Co. Ltd. — Landscape Contractor