M&Z Travel·Home x Dunhuang | Why Not Build a Home in the Desert?

“People set out, arrive, leave, and return, full of curiosity and full of faith.”

The Mogao Caves, a thousand years in a glance; the harmonious coexistence of Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Moon Spring; the wind blowing head-on, mixed with grains of sand... The spirit of freedom, fearlessness, and inclusiveness symbolized by the land of Dunhuang can only be truly appreciated by setting foot there in person.

In early August, we launched the second season of our brand event "Travel·Home" under the theme "Life Self-Defined" on the hot desert land of Dunhuang. Together with loyal customers, home furnishing industry media, lifestyle influencers, and many friends, we explored Dunhuang's culture, history, art, and its unique local lifestyle.

At the same time, continuing the core of the "Travel·Home" activity, we presented home furnishing products in the form of a complete home amidst the desert, showcasing the infinite possibilities of a beautiful life.

Can life be defined? How are today's young people defining life? What life inspirations can emerge from the intersection of home furnishing and Dunhuang, tradition and modernity? It is precisely these questions that coalesced into the theme of this "Travel·Home" Dunhuang trip — Life Self-Defined.

Explore More Than One Answer

How do you define life?

At the end of 2020, for the first season of "Travel·Home", we brought 16 pieces of furniture and built a home on Mount Siguniang at an altitude of 3,760 meters, answering "What is a beautiful life?" in this unique way.

This year, "Travel·Home" set off again. Unlike before, the second season connected the entire exploration journey through check-in points at the Mogao Caves, Mingsha Mountain, and the Dunhuang Museum. We attempted to awaken, touch, and evoke in each participant a unique sentiment toward Dunhuang's history, culture, and art through firsthand experience, and thereby catch a glimpse of their answers to "Life Self-Defined".

At the Sharing Party gathering many old and new friends, Wang Zhanqiang, General Manager of M&Z Home Furnishings, shared the core of the theme "Life Self-Defined".

"Beauty can transcend the boundaries of time and space; life should never be constrained. Rather than being defined, it is better to self-define. Self-definition brings more possibilities to life. We hope to use diverse and beautiful home furnishing products to build undefined spaces and undefined lives, fulfilling people's desire for self-expression and presenting their true, complete selves. This is the viewpoint that M&Z Home most wants to convey through the theme 'Life Self-Defined'."

Through a starlight night talk with just the right atmosphere, we saw a richer and more diverse lifestyle.

When we posed the question "How do you define life?", everyone's answer was unique. Interests, experiences, and even age can give different answers to life, because each person is unique. "Self-definition" is instinctive and a normal part of life.

This instinct naturally projects onto the container of life — home. From being defined by style to defining style, and then to abandoning style, home is a true and complete representation of one's lifestyle.

Lifestyle has no unified standard or clear answer. Although most of the time it is hard to balance work and life, ideals and reality, home is always a synthesis of "Peace & Love".

Break away from conformity, say bye to fixed life patterns, and face ourselves with sincerity and openness. In this era, we have more choices.

It is precisely because of this that everyone's home has its own way of presentation, and everyone can self-define their life.

Build a Home in the Desert

Since we can choose and define ourselves, why not build a home in the vast desert of Dunhuang facing the wind and sand?

When modern furniture with a unique design language merges with the boundless primitive desert, orderliness mixed with rule-breaking creates a scene that is not only visually stunning but also offers new life inspirations for people.

Cao Jiwei, product planner at M&Z Home Furnishings, also had a discussion with guests on the topic of "Contemporary Lifestyle" and explained the design concept of the new "Time in the Echo (ECHO)" series inspired by the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang.

"The vast desert is not only a natural landscape; it has also nurtured the stunning murals of the Thousand Buddha Caves in Mogao. Everyone's perception of Mogao is different. Setting aside the religious meaning of the paintings, what attracts me more is the essence that created them — the colors, pigments, textures, and the spirit of freedom, fearlessness, and inclusiveness symbolized by this desert land."

"From the rich colors of Dunhuang murals, we found a softer, more unique desert orange, and endowed it with a matte texture symbolizing the Gobi Desert, making it the material tone of the entire series. In terms of product design, we combined contemporary Urben with the retro trend of the industrial age to form a unique design language. There's no need to define a style; we prefer it to represent a contemporary, free, and open attitude."

Dunhuang is open because of inclusiveness, and coexists because of integration. We incorporated this insight into the "Time in the Echo (ECHO)" series, hoping to define life through inclusiveness, openness, and integration. This series of aesthetically pleasing new products also resonated emotionally with the guests present.

A "journey", an exploration. The vitality and inspiration sparked by the intersection of home furnishing and Dunhuang, tradition and modernity, allow us to re-understand ourselves and life with a self-defining attitude, generating a new passion for home and life.

As a long-established home furnishing brand, M&Z Home has undergone 32 years of development, possessing a calm and outstanding design capability. We express our love for life with an international aesthetic vision and the beauty of originality, integrating design aesthetics into home life to create tangible, touchable, and achievable beautiful living.

On the path of discovering, exploring, and realizing the diverse lifestyles of young people, we have never stopped.

This "Travel·Home" Dunhuang trip received affirmation and support from leading local lifestyle self-media in Chengdu: @试物所 (Trial), @成都Big榜 (Chengdu Big List), and @一筑一事 (One Building One Thing), breaking through the voice among young people.

I went to the Northwest and actually owned a one-bedroom-one-living-room in the desert!

Traveling 1,900 kilometers, sleeping with bed and sofa in Dunhuang desert

Everyone talks about life self-defined, but who makes furniture in the desert?

Continuing the core brand spirit through "Travel·Home", creating boundless beauty with "Life Self-Defined", we see the colorful lifestyles of young people and use diverse, beautiful home products to build their undefined lives. On August 16, the "Life Self-Defined" exploration theme film will be released online. Join us and look forward to it!