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    Gensler redesigns its own LA office to have “warmth and comfort” of home

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    The team at global architecture firm Gensler’s Los Angeles office has redesigned a floor of its workspace with a hospitality approach, as a pilot for the remaining spaces.

    The Gensler LA team’s renovated its space to give it more of the “warmth and comfort” that its staff became used to during its time working from home.
    The team at Gensler LA redesigned the third floor of their offices to better suit their current workplace needsThe studio’s return to the office post-pandemic came seven years into a 15-year lease of its spaces in Downtown Los Angeles, the firm had converted from an empty bank building in 2011 then expanded to two floors in an adjacent, connected structure.
    With a growing workforce and a desire to rethink the layout, functionality and appearance of the office, a group of the studio’s “next generation” of designers and strategists led an effort to redesign the interiors of the third floor.
    The pilot project incorporates several products from Gensler collaborations, including open shelving and communal tables”The look and feel of our space, though contemporary, lacked the warmth and comfort of the hospitality touches we integrate for our clients’ workspaces and that we had become accustomed to while working from home,” Gensler senior strategist Sarah Koos told Dezeen.

    “Coupled with the changing nature of hybrid work, the space necessitated a transformation that would support a renewed sense of a work-lifestyle.”
    A warm aesthetic that captures the essence of Los Angeles was chosen for the interiorsThe group spent a year listening and learning from surveys, workshops and feedback sessions in which each of the 500-plus employees was able to have a say about their future work environment.
    Many team members had been highly mobile even before hybrid working became popular, so the previous dedicated desk system seemed redundant.
    “Working from home for two years effectively rewired peoples’ expectations of their work environments, a sterile, single-use corporate office no longer spoke to the warmth, variety, and comfort they were afforded in their own homes,” said Koos.
    Plenty of lounge areas with comfy seating were created for employees to useThey therefore set about redesigning the offices with a focus on flexibility, communal work areas and presentation spaces.
    “Rather than confine our designers to a desk or a conference room, we developed a kit-of-parts inclusive of typical sit-stand workstations, communal tables, focus pods, booths, material layout islands, and more,” said Gensler senior designer Kirk Bairian.
    “Gensler is built on a studio system which is critical to our design culture, and each studio was able to use this kit-of-parts to customise their space to reflect the specific ways in which they work.”
    The team devised a “kit of parts” for the different studios to customise their own workspacesA warm, hospitality-forward aesthetic that mirrors the “informal but elevated, casual but curated” essence of Los Angeles was chosen.
    Materials including maple plywood, blackened metal and subtle textiles provide a backdrop for more colourful additions in the form of ever-changing pin-up display boards, styled shelving, artwork by local students and books from local creative businesses.

    Eight interiors and architecture projects by Gensler

    Lounge-style furniture and jewel-toned textiles are placed in the co-working areas to evoke a hotel lobby or coffee shop vibe.
    Several of Gensler’s furniture and fixture collaborations were also introduced, among them the communal tables and open shelcves from a product line created with Fantoni and custom focus pods from a partnership with Tangram’s Studio Other.
    Traditional conference rooms are available alongside more flexible spaces for group workSince the project completed in 2023, the data from badges suggest that employee office attendance has increased by 35 per cent for the studios located in the renovated pilot space, according to the firm.
    “Studios in the new space shared that they felt that working in the renovated space made them more productive, enabled more effective collaboration, and overall, greatly improved their in-office experience,” the team added.
    Maple plywood and blackened metal were among the materials chosen to give the space more of a hospitality feelGensler is the world’s largest architecture firm and has locations 53 locations globally. Its European head offices in Wapping, London, was longlisted in the business building category of Dezeen Awards 2020.
    In 2022, co-CEO Andy Cohen told Dezeen in an exclusive interview that architecture should abandon “top-down” management to improve working conditions.

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      Kelly Wearstler designs Los Angeles bar to feel “like it has been there for ages”

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      Interior designer Kelly Wearstler paired clay plaster walls with Moroccan cement tiles at this eclectic cocktail bar in the Downtown LA Proper hotel.

      Named after Mexico’s national flower, the Dahlia bar features a blushing interior that was designed to echo the rest of the hotel – also created by Wearstler.
      The designer looked to the same Spanish, Mexican and Moroccan influences that define the wider Downtown LA Proper, such as terracotta Roman clay plaster walls and ceilings when conceptualising the bar.
      Dahlia is a cocktail lounge within the Downtown LA Proper hotel”The warm, earthy tones of the lounge are in concert with the larger hotel while striking their own note entirely,” said Wearstler.
      “Dahlia feels like it has been there for ages,” added the designer, who has been named as a judge for the inaugural Dezeen Awards China.

      Moroccan cement tiles clad the barVisitors enter the bar through yellow-tinged stained glass doors that were custom-made for the venue by Los Angeles’ historic Judson Studios, which claims to be the oldest family-run stained glass company in America.
      Seating was created from a mix of built-in reddish banquettes and low-slung curved armchairs that hug circular timber tables, while a geometric chandelier draped in light-filtering silk was suspended overhead.

      Kelly Wearstler renovates swimming pool for suite in Downtown LA Proper Hotel

      In one corner, an embossed and low-slung black cabinet supports two squat table lamps that look like oversized green olives.
      Wearstler adorned the clay plaster walls with a mishmash of vintage and contemporary textural artwork, which was finished in ceramic and sand. Various local artists were included in the mix.
      Kelly Wearstler imbued the venue with her signature eclectic styleDefined by “saturated hues and dramatic lighting,” the cocktail lounge also features a bar clad with lilac-hued Moroccan cement tiles and woven crimson rugs.
      “This is the kind of space where you can entirely lose track of time,” said the designer.
      Known for her distinctively eclectic style, Wearstler has created interiors for various other destinations that are part of the Proper Hotel Group. The designer scoured vintage shops to source the furniture that decorates the living room-style lobby of a Santa Monica branch while an Austin location features a sculptural oak staircase that doubles as a plinth for Wearstler’s own glazed earthenware pots and vases.
      The images are courtesy of Kelly Wearstler.

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      Sheft Farrace renovates loft in Los Angeles' art deco Eastern Columbia building

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      Architecture studio Sheft Farrace has renovated a loft apartment in Los Angeles’ iconic Eastern Columbia building, subtly incorporating colours from the art deco exterior into the minimalist interiors.

      The studio renovated the loft while drawing details from the exterior of the 13-storey building in Downtown Los Angeles, known for its highly detailed turquoise facade and clock tower, which was designed by Claud Beelman and completed in 1930.
      Sheft Farrace chose to divide up the loft, yet retain visual connections through framed openingsIt was converted into lofts in 2006, and local studio Sheft Farrace was recently tasked with renovating one of the condos for a young creative from Kazakhstan.
      “Uninspired by the unit’s original 2006 layout and interiors, the owner wanted it to feel like a brand new space — so Sheft Farrace approached it as a blank canvas,” said the studio, led by Alex Sheft and John Farrace.
      The pared-down decor contrasts the building’s colourful exteriorThe apartment has tall ceilings, and their height is accentuated by the building’s long narrow windows and floor-to-ceiling drapery.

      Rather than keep the open floor plan, the studio chose to divide up the space to help define areas for different functions.
      The ceiling height is accentuated by tall windows and floor-to-ceiling draperyHowever, the visual connections between the kitchen and dining room, and the living room and bedroom, are retained by large framed openings used in place of doors.
      “Every space has its own character, based on what time of day it is and how the natural light comes in through the full-height windows,” said Sheft Farrace.

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      For the most part, the home is decorated in a much more pared-down style than the building’s opulent exterior, primarily with soft neutral hues and sparse furnishings.
      Certain material choices in the kitchen and bathroom tie much more closely to the colourful facades, including white oak, Verde Aver marble, and Florida Brush quartzite to echo the orange, green and blue exterior tiles.
      Materials like white oak and Florida Brush quartzite in the kitchen nod to the art deco exteriorThe curved corners of the kitchen counters and elongated cabinet hardware also evoke 1930s design.
      “Upon first glance, it’s stylistically in stark contrast with the historical building that it’s within, but throughout the space are subtle nods to the art deco exterior and ultimately, it feels like it belongs,” Sheft Farrace said. “We felt honored to have contributed a small chapter to the long and storied history of a Los Angeles landmark.”
      In the bathroom, Verde Aver marble was also chosen to reference the historic tiled facadesDowntown Los Angeles has dramatically transformed from a no-go zone to a popular and thriving neighbourhood over the past 20 years.
      This shift is partially thanks to the opening of cultural institutions like Frank Gehry’s Walt Disney Concert Hall and Diller Scofidio + Renfro’s The Broad museum, as well as a spate of high-end hotels.
      The photography is by Yoshihiro Makino.

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      Yabu Pushelberg references multi-faceted LA culture in conjoined hotels

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      Canadian design studio Yabu Pushelberg has created the Moxy and AC Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles to encapsulate a variety of references to the surrounding city.

      The two hotels were placed side by side within a Gensler-designed building in central Los Angeles, with Yabu Pushelberg carrying out the design for both hotels.
      The designers used a variety of LA-oriented references across both hotels, referencing local artist culture, streetlife, the desert, as well as the imagery of movies from Hollywood.
      The Moxy Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles was designed based on deserts and cinema”Moving making and the California Dream are all mashed up together to create this atmosphere,” studio co-founder George Yabu told Dezeen.
      “We also captured the grittiness,” added co-founder Glenn Pushelberg. 

      The hotels were designed to complement each other, providing various experiences for guests, who the team hopes can be staying in one while visiting the bars and restaurants of the others.
      Yabu Pushelberg wanted to challenge guests with a sense of “grittiness”According to the duo, the hotels are meant to be the day and nighttime versions of the same person or “like the same person in different movies”.
      AC Hotel provides a more work-oriented vision and the Moxy representing a more dimly lit atmosphere.
      The Moxy includes lounge areas with plush furnitureUsing desert themes and references to the 1969 film Easy Rider starring Peter Fonda, the Moxy has rammed earth walls, woven wall hangings and homages to motorcycle culture with a custom pouf designed with Harley Davidson in mind. It even has a motorcycle in the lobby lounge.
      “If you look at the materialities and colors and textures, it is kind of off-off, which makes it on,” said Pushelberg. 
      AC Hotel is more restrainedAlso in the Moxy’s lobby is a snakeskin-like carpet with a graphic of a snake.
      The hotel includes studio spaces above the lobby with neon lights and plush furniture; minimal rooms with tile and stone walls; and a bar inspired by the “roadside gas station” with mottled stone countertops, metal mesh liquor cabinets and “cocoon-like” chairs.
      The AC Hotel is meant to evoke the artist’s loftThe AC Hotel is more restrained. The lobby is on the 34th floor and was designed to evoke the “artist’s loft” with views of the city below. Materials were inspired by Spanish architecture – such as textured plaster and stucco.
      These details continue throughout the bars, guestrooms and library lounge, with the addition of wooden sculptures and dark black tile.
      Yabu Pushelberg designed the carpets in the guest rooms to “reflect the geometric pattern and color story found throughout the hotel” and contrast the birch wood flooring.

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      According to the team, the hotels together are meant to bring together a variety of local influences to attract people to the downtown core.
      “It’s a ​​perfect time for the hotels to be there because all these different types of people have never ever had a reason to go downtown,” said Pushelberg, who referenced the growing gallery scene in the area as an additional inspiration.
      The AC’s lobby is on the 34th floor of the buildingThe design follows a slew of other hotels designed for LA’s downtown, including Hotel Per La designed by Jaqui Seerman, which occupies a 1920s bank building.
      A division of Marriot, Moxy has dozens of hotels around the world, including a recent addition in New York’s Lower East Side designed by Michaelis Boyd and Rockwell Group.

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      Jaqui Seerman updates interiors of LA bank building for Hotel Per La

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      A new hotel occupies 1920s bank headquarters in Downtown LA, where Jaqui Seerman refreshed public spaces to include a botanical-themed lounge and a mirror-lined arched gallery.

      Hotel Per La is housed in the neoclassical Giannini Building, built in 1922 as the headquarters for the Bank of Italy, and takes the place of the NoMad Los Angeles which closed its doors in March 2021.
      Hotel Per La replaces the Nomad Los Angeles in the 1920s bank headquartersIts 10,000 square feet (930 square metres) of public and event spaces have been refreshed by local interior designer Jaqui Seerman, who used the 12-storey property’s Italian connection to inform her updates.
      “A nod to the building’s storied beginning as a bank for the people, the ‘Per La’ name translates to ‘for the’ in Italian,” said the hotel.
      “[The bank’s] founder, Amadeo Pietro Giannini, believed in the dignity and abilities of those commonly overlooked, signifying the hotel’s inclusive spirit and name, essentially meaning ‘for Los Angeles, and people like you’.”

      A mirror-lined arched gallery opens into the main lobbyDemarcated by a pale blue awning, the hotel’s entrance has been relocated from 7th Street to Olive Street, leaving the doric columns across the grand facade fully visible.
      Through the doors, guests find themselves in a double-height lounge filled with plants and comfy chairs covered in botanical patterns.
      The custom front desk is by Voila Creative Studio and the hand-painted tapestry behind is by Jessalyn BrooksAn arched gallery lined with mirrors leads to the lobby, situated in what was once the main banking hall.
      In the reception area, a custom-made curved plaster front desk influenced by linen fabric was designed by Voila Creative Studio, while a hand-painted tapestry that hangs in the niches behind was produced by LA muralist Jessalyn Brooks.
      A purple games room features commissioned art and furniture from local artisansA rich purple lounge features a new game cabinet, as well as commissioned art and furniture sourced from local artisans.
      Event spaces range from a second-floor courtyard for private outdoor dinners, to larger spaces for up to 850 people.
      A second-floor courtyard hosts private outdoor dinnersDining options within the hotel include Per L’Ora, which serves Italian cuisine and features a light colour palette across curvaceous design elements influenced by the early 2000s.
      “The bar of the restaurant acts as a dramatic centerpiece, with a custom-made marble top in shades of green, grey, and white, and globe-shaped light fixtures, while custom white plasterwork on the front of the bar offers a new sense of texture,” said the hotel operators.

      Kelly Wearstler makes “bold and eclectic choices” for Downtown LA Proper hotel

      Adjacent to the restaurant is a casual cafe modelled on a Venetian coffee shop, serving beverages, pastries and snacks.
      On the rooftop, Bar Clara offers cocktails for poolside lounging and hosts live performances with the LA skyline as a backdrop.
      Guest rooms are decorated to echo the ornate blue and gold ceiling in lobbyThe 241 guest rooms and suites have retained much of the aesthetic created by French architect Jacques Garcia for the NoMad, referencing the restored gold and blue ceiling in the lobby.
      Downtown LA, the city’s most walkable neighbourhood, has experienced a cultural renaissance over the past decade.
      The hotel occupies the neoclassical Giannini Building in Downtown LAThe area is now home to several design-forward hotels including Kelly Wearstler’s Proper – which was just named hotel and short-stay interior of the year at the 2022 Dezeen Awards – a Soho House, and an Ace Hotel.
      Per La is the latest hotel in the US to open in a converted bank building, following the likes of The Durham in North Carolina and The Quoin in Wilmington, Delaware.
      The photography is by The Ingalls.

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      Kelly Wearstler renovates swimming pool for suite in Downtown LA Proper Hotel

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      American designer Kelly Wearstler has refurbished a pool for a suite in the Downtown LA Proper Hotel, which opened earlier this year.

      As part of her studio’s extensive refurbishment of the building, Wearstler took the 35-foot (10.6-metre) pool from its previous use as a YWCA and turned it into a feature for the Pool Suite on the seventh floor.
      Kelly Wearstler remodelled the swimming room as part of a standalone suiteWith Omgivning as the project architect, the 2,777-square-foot (258-square-metre) room is one of 148 that she renovated for the launch of the hotel in February 2022. It is the only location in the Proper Hotel group chain thats feature an in-suite swimming pool.
      The room’s interior takes art deco influences from the club that the building was originally designed for in the 1920s.
      The Italian marble tile continues into the kitchen”During our initial research into the landmark building, we discovered this pool room originally shared a floor plate with guest rooms and so thought it would be a novel idea to transform it into an iconic suite with a private pool,” said Wearstler.

      Over the pool is an ivory ceramic mirror mural that covers the whole wall, created by artist Ben Medansky, who also worked with Wearstler on the Proper hotel in Santa Monica.
      The bedroom has a Kelly Wearstler-designed Matador bed”It was important to me to avoid a repeating pattern and instead treat each tile as its own canvas – no two are exactly alike,” said Medansky.
      “I drew inspiration from my Los Angeles-to-Arizona road trips over the years, and incorporated motifs of tire treads, traffic signs, and cacti, which were then minimized, abstracted, and put back together in a puzzle formation.”
      A mustard yellow shade covers the bedroom wallsIn the pool room, there is also an expressive wooden statue that sits in front of a window that naturally illuminated the space. Against the mosaic, Wearstler has placed a thin black metal bench.
      The floors surrounding the pool comprise multicoloured marble tiles – contributing to the 136 unique types of tile used across the hotel.

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      A small lounge area with pink chairs by Michael Felix is placed in the entryway that separates the pool from the rest of the suite.
      The pool deck leads into an open kitchen, with similarly tiled floors and pink plaster walls by Studio One Plaster.
      The bathroom tile design was completed in houseA marble backsplash, custom millwork made with light wood, and an island with Lostine barstools also feature in this space.
      Meanwhile, a small dining table is accompanied by a set of Kelly Wearstler Martel Chairs.
      Much of the furniture in the suite was sourced from vintage outlets in the US and EuropeA bedroom and lounge area have dark-stained wood floors and walls painted a rich yellow colour that surround windows overlooking Downtown LA.
      The bathroom was lined with bronze and black tile made in house by Wearstler’s team.
      The LA-based designer is also behind a third Proper hotel in California, located in San Francisco and featuring an as the “eclectic” interior filled with vintage and European furniture.
      The photography is by The Ingalls.
      Project credits:
      Design: Kelly WearstlerArchitect: OmgivningCompany: McGuire BuildersHospitality: Group Proper HospitalityDeveloper: The KOR Group

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      Kelly Wearstler makes “bold and eclectic choices” for Downtown LA Proper hotel

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      American interior designer Kelly Wearstler paired the rich history of Downtown Los Angeles with other colourful global influences when creating this hotel, which features 136 unique types of tile.

      Part of the Proper hotel group, Downtown LA Proper sits between Downtown Los Angeles’ South Park District and the city’s Fashion District.
      Kelly Wearstler designed the eclectic interiors of Downtown LA ProperThe 148-room hotel is located within a former private club that was designed by architecture studio Curlett & Beelman in the 1920s.
      Real estate developer The Kor Group teamed up with Wearstler to transform the building into Downtown LA Proper, with Wearstler spearheading the interior design.
      Morgan Peck created a chunky graphite reception deskAccording to Wearstler, the hotel’s interiors take cues from LA’s “creative scene”, as well as the colours and forms of Mexican, Moroccan, Spanish and Portuguese design.

      “My point of reference for the Proper Hotels is always the location, so Downtown LA Proper really called for bold and eclectic choices,” she told Dezeen.
      Guest rooms feature patterned headboards”As the design of the hotel was greatly inspired by the community and history of the area, I used a deep, warm, colour and feel throughout to speak to this rich culture and history,” added Wearstler.
      “The [hotel’s overall] design comprises 136 unique types of tile, from vintage to custom.”
      Wearstler used a colourful palette throughout the hotelVisitors enter the hotel via the building’s original ornate archway, which is flanked by column-like cacti in rustic pots, where they are met with a graphite reception desk designed by ceramicist Morgan Peck.
      The original pink and white checkerboard floor tiling was retained in this area, while the ceiling is decorated with a hand-painted multicoloured mural designed by Abel Macias, which drew on the flora and fauna of Mexican folktales.
      Caldo Verde includes a bespoke stained-glass doorwayThis eclecticism is also reflected in Downtown LA Proper’s guest rooms. Wearstler blended contrasting elements such as chunkily-patterned headboards with smooth wooden floors, while the walls vary within a spectrum of charcoal, mauve, dusty blue, umber and ecru.
      The building contains three eateries including the lobby-level Caldo Verde restaurant and bar, which Wearstler designed to reflect the rest of the hotel’s interiors.

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      A collection of vintage rugs and seating, cocoa and sandstone tiles and jungle-like plants are set against a bespoke stained-glass installation by Judson Studios that makes up the restaurant’s doorway.
      Other design elements that create Downtown LA Proper’s bright and bold atmosphere include Mexican brutalist hand-carved chairs, woven pendant lights from the south of France and stone mosaic tables.
      Brutalist hand-carved chairs add to the project’s eclecticism”The building itself is a historic-cultural monument, so we wanted to maintain some of the original integrity and fabric, like the window casing and brickwork, while elevating it with contemporary jewel tones, patterns and plasterwork,” said Wearstler.
      “I truly wanted to embark on a spirited exploration of materiality, colour and form, to share with guests a hyper-localised flavour of the city and create a hub for local creatives.”
      The work of emerging artists features throughout the hotelWearstler founded her eponymous interior design studio in 1995 and is responsible for the eclectic interiors of several other Proper hotels including its San Francisco and Santa Monica outposts.
      The designer also recently transformed a 1950s beachfront cottage in California into a bohemian retreat for her family.
      The images are courtesy of Kelly Wearstler.

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      NeueHouse opens Los Angeles co-working space inside landmarked Bradbury Building

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      Canadian studio DesignAgency incorporated “soft and graceful flourishes” into NeueHouse’s latest co-working location that occupies a full floor in a 1890s structure in Downtown Los Angeles. Founded in 2011, NeueHouse describes itself as a “cultural home for creators, innovators and thought leaders”. The company’s new workspace in Los Angeles joins two other locations in New […] More