NAME TO KNOW Li-Xiang

Discover the whimsical world of this Shanghai-based designer, the new toast in design town

- PRAGNYA RAO

FroLoong Swim Club in Suzhou is a wonderland with its use of gentle colour with hints of black that elevate the space

I am pretty certain almost every one of us has spent at least a few minutes marvelling as we scrolled through the visuals of the Chongqing Zhongshuge Bookstore in the past year - the one with a veritable maze of stairs and bookshelves with mirrored ceilings that is unlike any bookstore you have probably seen. For the uninitiated it is Li-Xiang, a Shanghai based designer who has dreamt up not just this delirious dream but is also credited with some of the most wondrous interiors in recent times. Fantastical, whimsical and always joyful, abstract architecture forms the core of her of concepts. Born in a Northern city in China, she received her bachelor's degree in architecture from Birmingham City College. She went on to establish X+Living in 2011, and now has under her belt a slew of projects that are at the cutting edge of art, fashion and business. A firm believer of the philosophy that design creates value, Li-Xiang shows us around her magical world.