In the blocks behind Taipei Main Station, some buildings are not as eye-catching as landmarks, yet the moment you look up, you sense that “there is a story here.” The building where MEANDER 1948 is located was originally constructed in the 1940s as a Shilin Paper Company office building, often referred to as part of the Shilin paper industry facilities. Through its earnest proportions and careful detailing, it preserves the image of Taipei as it evolved from an industrial and commercial city.

The charm of this building does not come from being “newly renovated,” but from retaining much of its original architectural language. The classical façade system, rows of Roman columns, window proportions, cast-iron railings, and interior elements such as wooden structures and terrazzo surfaces remain legible today. It is like a sentence in the city’s architectural text, still readable in its rhythm.

Starting from the exterior, the most immediate feature of the building is its classical facade language. It retains Greek inspired elements and Roman colonnades from the original structure, along with the original window proportions and cast iron railings. The recognizable composite Roman columns and wall ornamentation allow passersby to read a sense of dignity from a specific era directly from the street. It is not about luxury, but about a city expression that places order and proportion first.

In many contemporary buildings, windows are cut into the façade. In this building, windows feel carefully arranged within a larger order. Their proportions determine how light enters the interior, how rhythm appears from the street, and whether the building feels grounded or superficial.

This is why, even in the lively area behind Taipei Main Station, the building carries a sense of steadiness. It reminds you that the city was once built at a slower pace, with greater attention to balance and care.

When discussing architectural appeal, the structural framework should never be overlooked. This building retains Baroque-influenced exterior language while preserving original structural walls and beams.

Here, beams and columns are more than engineering terms. They shape spatial experience. The spacing of columns defines how you move through the space, the height of beams determines the weight of the air, and the structural walls carry architectural logic from another era into the present. The sense of order is clear. It is not meant to impress, but to provide stability.

Many people remember an old building not by its appearance, but by how it feels. Terrazzo floors and patterned glass are materials widely used in Taiwan since the 1950s and are deeply associated with everyday craftsmanship.

During renovation, the original wooden structures were deliberately preserved and connected through light and color across different periods. Even without discussing the renovation itself, the wooden framework already tells a story of how the building was constructed, how it supported daily use, and how it has maintained its structural integrity over time.

It was not preserved simply because it is old. More importantly, it possesses a recognizable architectural language and a structural framework that can continue to support use. This is why MEANDER 1948 received the Taipei Old Building Regeneration Award in 2018 (Gold Prize, Non-Residential Category). Rather than being a building “styled to look old,” it is one that has always had a clear architectural voice, allowing it to be read and used meaningfully today.

For those who want to read the architecture: where to stand and how to look

If you wish to view it as an architectural work, consider reading it from three perspectives:

1. Step back to view the façade: observe the rhythm of columns and windows, and how proportion gives the building its stability.

2. Move closer to see the details: notice the cast-iron railings and the layers and shadows of the façade ornamentation.

3. Step inside to feel the framework: pay attention to the spatial order created by beams and columns, and the textures of terrazzo, glass, and wood.

Address: No. 42, Taiyuan Road, Datong District, Taipei

Tel: +886 2 2558-8812

Email: 1948@staymeander.com