Designer Ping Wang. Photo provided to China Daily

After turning a dingy box room of 12 square meters into an attractive modern loft for a reality TV show, Taiwan-born designer and architect Ping Wang has become the latest darling of social media hounds in Shanghai.

Before he got involved with the program, the loft project that turned him into a minor WeChat celebrity would have been considered something of an anomaly for this bashful genius.

Most of his paid projects here, and in neighboring cities, involve luxury clubs, high-end residential areas and office space.

The small house on Nanjing Road East, the busiest shopping street in Shanghai, was picked from thousands of bread-line candidates hoping for a free makeover courtesy of Dragon TV's Dream Renovator show.

"When I first saw the place, I was shocked," says Wang, who also serves as the design director of Shanghai Ping Design Studio. "It was in a narrow lane. It was ridiculously small. It was oppressive."