Amanyangyun Resort, located in Shanghai, China, was imagined as a contemporary walled village in a forest. Ten thousand mature camphor trees and 26 Ming and Qing dynasty houses were rescued from the rising waters of a new dam in Jiangxi Province and relocated to Shanghai. They are key ingredients of the project, which includes the Aman Hotel, 43 villas and the Nan Shufang cultural centre. The empty site invited strong, simple architectural forms, while the antique houses required careful interpretation and appropriate contemporary interventions, assisted by a team of local craftspeople. Spaces unfold at a variety of scales, from the tree-lined main avenue through the walled gardens of the hotel to the intimate private courtyards. Lanes are scaled for pedestrians and designed to slow vehicles. Perforated, load-bearing sandstone walls encourage breeze and modulate privacy, creating striking geometrical shadow patterns. With a limited palette of humble, natural materials, the design offers a rich variety of experiences through the manipulation of space, detail and light.