studio locomotive designed the hotel gahn, located in phang nga, thailand, as a testament to the inheritance of the status of the project owner?s mother. the pride in her status as ?baba-nyonya?, or the descendants from the interethnic marriage of the chinese settlers and native inhabitants of malay peninsula and indonesian archipelago, inspired the designers to create a hotel that rediscovers and appreciates the local ancestral heritage. 

 
 
studio locomotive?s design intention is to offer guests the spatial experience of takua pa?s baba-nyonya family lifestyle suggesting in space programming, choices of materials, material treatments, household objects, and traditional construction details. the designers were inspired by the storytelling behind the mother?s dress of a floral laced blouse, batik sarong, beaded slippers, and fine antique gold jewelry, her home-cooked recipes, and her reminiscences of the ways of living in her hometown.
 
 
on arrival, the five-story hotel is outstanding from the steel gateway, modified from the signature continuous shophouse verandah ?ngo-ka-ki?. this preserves the privacy from road activities and the extensive wood façade, covering pipelines running out of the building to optimize ceiling height. the hotel reception, coffee bar, and restaurant share the common floor furnished with eclectic forms of asian-inspired timber tables and seats decorated with batik cloth cushion covers. 

 
 
the central square table with several anti...