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      Dorothée Meilichzon reimagines historic Biarritz hotel with nautical nods

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      French interior designer Dorothée Meilichzon has renovated a Belle Epoque-era hotel in Biarritz, France, blending maritime and art deco motifs to add contemporary flair to the historic building.

      The Regina Experimental sits on a clifftop overlooking the Bay of Biscay in the French seaside city, which was once a royal getaway and is now a popular surfing destination.
      Nautical designs decorate the corridorsConstructed in 1907 by architect and landscape designer Henry Martinet, the grand building features a 15-metre-high atrium, large bay windows, a glass roof, and hints of art deco throughout.
      The majority of its spaces were well preserved, so Meilichzon’s input involved modernising the furnishings and decor – adding colour and pattern to enliven the spaces while playing on the hotel’s coastal location.
      Totemic sculptures were used in the hotel’s atriumIn the light-filled atrium, dark red and green sofas were arranged to create intimate seating areas within the expansive room.

      Totemic wicker sculptures form a line down the centre of the room, and cylindrical paper lanterns by designers Ingo Maurer and Anthony Dickens hang from the columns on either side.
      Guest rooms feature geometric, art deco-influenced headboards and striped upholsteryGuests in this space are served cocktails from a bar top shaped like an ocean liner, designed as an homage to modernist architect Eileen Gray, while listening to live piano music.
      While the bar top nods to Gray’s designs, the sofas in the room play on the shapes of the Itsasoan footbridge in nearby Guétary.
      Mirrors wrapped in rope continue the maritime theme in the roomsCarpet patterns vary between the different areas of the hotel – in the corridors, they carry a nautical motif, while the markings are reminiscent of fish scales in the guest rooms.
      The hotel’s restaurant, Frenchie, offers Basque-inspired cuisine within a bright room that features more nautical references, such as rope-hung shelves and shell-shaped sconces.
      Shell-shaped sconces decorate the dining roomHighly patterned tiled floors and furniture contrast the restaurant’s neutral plaster walls and ceiling, which are punctuated by arched niches and curved plywood panels.
      The dining area spills onto an outdoor terrace, populated by red cafe tables and chairs lined up against pale blue banquettes, around the corner from a swimming pool.

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      The hotel’s 72 guest rooms are accessible from corridors that wrap around the atrium, and face either the ocean or the Golf de Biarritz Le Phare golf course.
      Shades of blue and green dominate the art deco-influenced bedrooms, which feature glossy geometric headboards and marine-striped upholstery.
      A cool palette of greens and blues is used in the bathroomsSmall lamps extend from rope frames that wrap around the mirrors, and red accents on smaller furniture pieces pop against the cooler hues.
      “Bedrooms are awash with Japanese straw and rope combined with marine stripes and plaster frescoes with aquatic motifs,” said the hotel. “Evocative of an ocean liner, each bedroom incorporates curved forms and long horizontal lines.”
      Built in 1907, the hotel overlooks the Bay of Biscay from a clifftopMeilichzon, founder of Paris-based design agency Chzon, is a frequent collaborator of the Experimental Group, and has designed the interiors for several of its properties.
      Earlier this year, she gave a bohemian refresh to Ibiza’s first hotel, now called the Montesol Experimental, and previously completed the Hotel Il Palazzo Experimental in Venice.
      The photography is by Mr Tripper.

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      Giannone Petricone Associates rescues Ontario hotel from ruin

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      Toronto studio Giannone Petricone Associates has spent a decade restoring a dilapidated hotel in Ontario, linking the building’s past and present through regionally influenced design details.

      Located in Picton, a town in Prince Edward County (PEC) that lies close to the shores of Lake Ontario, The Royal Hotel was in bad shape when the Sorbara family purchased it in 2013.
      The Royal Hotel’s interiors draw upon a mix Victorian and contemporary influences, as seen in the reception area. Photo by Graydon HerriottThe new owners hired Giannone Petricone Associates (GPA) to save what they could of the existing building, which was first completed in 1879, and transform it into contemporary lodgings.
      “Its central staircase was lined with a lush carpet of green moss, and early in the planning phase, the roof caved in,” said the hotel team.
      One of four hotel bars is lined with tambour panelling”But the family vowed to restore the property and bring it back to life as a nexus for both locals and guests of PEC’s burgeoning food and wine region.”

      The architects were able to salvage three of the original brick walls, and within them created a cafe, three bars, a fine-dining restaurant; and a spa, gym and sauna.
      Playful design elements include ceiling rosettes that mimic water ripplesA landscaped terrace overlooks a fourth bar and a brick patio with lounge seating, while an outdoor swimming pool flanked by a row of cabana beds lies beyond.
      A total of 33 guest rooms are available: 28 in the main three-storey hotel building, and a further five suites in a rebuilt stable named The Royal Annex.
      Another cosy lounge area features dark tambour panels around its fireplaceFor the interiors, GPA played on tropes of Victorian railway hotels, mixing formal elements of British tradition with PEC’s more laid-back rural sensibility.
      “The Royal is designed to be a transporting experience while deeply rooted in the local context,” said GPA principal Pina Petricone. “The experience benefits from the charged contrast between ‘genteel’ and ‘real’ elements.”

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      In the lobby, the reception desk is wrapped in a floral pattern and a wooden shelving system forms a boutique displaying items for sale.
      Tambour panelling lines the adjacent bar area, which flows into a lounge where softly undulated plasterwork frames a fireplace.
      The hotel offers 33 guest rooms, which feature details like cross-stitched headboardsA variety of checkered and tartan patterns are found across hallway carpets, mosaic bathroom tiles and cross-stitched headboards. Ceiling rosettes throughout the spaces are designed to mimic mushrooms and water ripples.
      “We wanted to have moments in the hotel that were a bit nonsensical,” Petricone said. “The Royal is about escapism, and our research into the hotel’s history demonstrated that it was always a pretty quirky place.”
      A variety of checkered patterns are found throughout the hotel, including in the mosaic bathroom tilesOther recently opened hotels in Canada include the Ace Toronto, which boasts a suspended lobby and rooftop bar.
      Last year, the 1 Hotel Toronto by Rockwell Group and The Drake Hotel Modern Wing by DesignAgency, also in the city, were longlisted in the Hotel and Short Stay Interiors category for the Dezeen Awards.
      The photography is by Doublespace, unless stated otherwise. Main image is by Jeff McNeill.

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      Design Theory updates mid-century coastal home in Perth

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      In the City Beach suburb of Perth in Western Australia, interiors studio Design Theory has updated a tired house from the 1960s while remaining true to the rich palette of natural materials in the original design.

      The young client wanted a home where she could entertain friends and live with her dogs in a durable, easy-to-clean, pet-proof home with a reworked plan making space for three bedrooms and two bathrooms.
      Design Theory has renovated a 1960s house in Perth”The brief was, on the surface, simple: to update the home while keeping its considerable mid-century charm,” said Design Theory.
      “While its strengths lay in its architectural form and south-facing windows, our innovative approach to the project was essential in bringing contemporary functionality and sustainability to the fore,” the studio added.
      “By specifying with our client’s lifestyle in mind and considering every detail, she feels relaxed to use the house the way she wants to.”

      Carpet tiles bring tactility into the sunken loungeOnce the project was underway, Design Theory quickly discovered that the structure was largely rotten and had suffered significant termite damage, so extensive restoration work was required.
      “We established an early rationale to restore base-building elements in keeping with the original architecture and interior elements,” the studio said.
      “Joinery, finishes and furniture would be new, informed by mid-century design. This allowed the home to evolve yet respect the heritage of this special building.”
      Yellow mosaic tiles feature across the kitchen counterOtherwise, the house only needed sensitive restoration and a light touch to bring it up to date, according to the studio, due to its prescient emphasis on natural light, fresh air and modern, unpretentious living.
      “Our design cues were taken from the era of the house’s original design, a time of humbler, honest materials and restrained detailing,” said Design Theory co-founder Lisa Reeves.
      “Where cabinetry needed restoration, it was updated in respectful ways, always with a nod to what may have come before us.”
      Design Theory introduced Blackbutt timber details to the interiorThe material palette celebrates warm, earthy materials: exposed brick in terracotta tones, native Blackbutt timber and a cork-like Forbo Marmoleum on the floors.
      In the sunken lounge area, carpet tiles bring an added element of comfort and a distinctive gridded visual effect.
      The heavy use of richly toned timber and brick is balanced by the white of the painted wall sections, the grid-like window frames and low-hanging pendant lighting.

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      For the kitchen counters and the bathrooms, simple mosaic tiles continue the textural theme, while referencing the home’s early-60s origins.
      “We embraced a quintessentially West Australia landscape-inspired palette of Eucalyptus greens, warm timbers and sunset oranges,” the studio said.
      Forbo Marmoleum flooring was added for textural interestIn the kitchen, subtle detailing on the cabinetry such as the full-width handles adds visual interest without grabbing undue attention, while an orange range cooker adds a retro touch.
      The client acquired several pieces of vintage furniture along with the house, which Design Theory was keen to retain and restore.
      Mint green tiles feature throughout one of the two bathroomsAs a counterpoint to these mid-century elements, contemporary furniture in gently curving forms softens the rigorous lines of the original architecture and prevents the interiors from feeling like a period pastiche.
      Key pieces of hardware such as original door furniture and pendant lighting were also refurbished and reinstated, “lending an authenticity to the home’s new life”, according to the studio.
      The built-in bathtub is also made from multicoloured mosaic tilesOther residential projects in Perth that have been featured on Dezeen include a family home formed from arched panels of precast concrete and a wood-and-brick extension for a couple of empty nesters.
      The photography is by Jack Lovel.

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      2LG Studio brings colour and personality into London family home

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      Ornately corniced ceilings were preserved and painted pastel inside this detached Edwardian house in southeast London, which local firm 2LG Studio has renovated for a returning client.

      Set in the leafy residential area of Forest Hill, the house on Sunderland Road belongs to a couple who needed space for their three young children to grow and play.
      2LG has completed Sunderland Road house in Forest Hill”Having designed this couple’s previous home, we had a strong sense of their tastes and wanted to evolve that for them in this house,” 2LG Studio founders Jordan Cluroe and Russell Whitehead told Dezeen.
      “We wanted to bring out their characters by emboldening their love of colour and finding ways to build pattern and joy into the materiality of the home,” the duo added.
      “The intent here was to respect the period elements of the building, whilst reflecting the modern style of the family who live there.”

      Hand-printed wallpaper by Custhom Studio features in the lounge and hallwayThroughout the house, playful elements are in balance with a more serious aesthetic.
      Instead of treating the home’s elaborate ceiling mouldings separately – as tradition dictates – 2LG Studio applied a colour-block philosophy and painted them in the same pastel tones used across the upper walls and ceilings.
      The studio drew on a range of references for the interior, from 1980s colours to Italian design elements such as marble and Murano glass lighting, all the way to the Scandinavian influences seen in the natural materials and minimalist approach to furnishing.
      The kitchen is defined by sky-blue cabinetry and marble countertopsCreating impact in the entrance hall is a hand-printed wallpaper, designed by 2LG Studio with long-term collaborator Custhom Studio and used here in a bespoke calamine-pink colourway that’s repeated in the connecting spaces throughout the house, as well as in the rear living area.
      “It creates a welcoming, human feel as soon as you enter,” the design team said.
      This ballet-slipper colour is paired with a brighter candy pink, bringing calm and warmth to the overall scheme.
      2LG painted ceilings, mouldings and upper walls in pastel coloursPink-heavy palettes have become a signature for 2LG, also reflected in the natural pink undertones of the extra-wide Douglas fir floorboards that feature throughout the house alongside a grey poured-resin floor in the kitchen.
      “The floorboards set the tone with a nod to Scandi minimalism, adding a natural soul throughout that unites the bolder elements,” said 2LG Studio.

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      In the kitchen, sky-blue cabinetry is used alongside marble countertops and splashbacks, with arched forms uniting the two finishes while pink elements such as bar stools pop against this calm backdrop.
      “The colours are a key part of the atmosphere and identity of this house,” said 2LG. “The blues gets deeper and bolder as you move upstairs into the study and the family bathroom.”
      “Primary red details give structure to the colour palette in the living room. Pastel green in the baby’s room is serene and fresh, warmed up with a mix of wood tones and creams.”
      Pink details feature throughout the home’s interiorsThe project features bespoke joinery including a playhouse on stilts in one of the kids’ rooms alongside existing 2LG pieces such as the Luca bedhead in the loft bedroom and the Tilda sofa, both designed for London furniture company Love Your Home and upholstered here in Kvadrat x Raf Simons fabric.
      “The fitted elements of the furniture give a sense of coherent design and function to the spaces whilst the classic design pieces bring a curated gallery feel, not unlike a contemporary luxury fashion store,” said 2LG Studio.
      2LG designed custom joinery including a stilted playhouseVarious recycled materials provide textural interest throughout the house, among them the recycled plastic wall lights in the living room by Spark and Bell.
      2LG Studio also added a pink Foresso top made using waste wood chips and resin to the dining table, while the bespoke bathroom cabinet was made using leftover Douglas fir floorboards with recycled plastic details by UK company Smile Plastics.
      Pastel green was used to finish the baby’s roomSince Cluroe and Whitehead founded their design practice in 2014 under the name 2 Lovely Gays, the studio has completed a number of residential projects in the British capital.
      Among them is the couple’s own home and office – to which they recently added a garden pavilion with a “touch of Beetlejuice” – and an equally colour-led renovation of a period property in the Heaver Estate conservation area.
      The photography is by Megan Taylor.

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      Bindloss Dawes maximises light and space in London mews house

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      Architecture firm Bindloss Dawes has reorganised a mews house in Chelsea, adding a full-height lightwell with a dramatic oak-and-steel staircase to forge “a sense of volume and theatre”.

      The client initially commissioned Bindloss Dawes to simply create a more spacious kitchen and living area on the lower ground floor of this typical London property and improve its relationship to the garden.
      Bindloss Dawes has completed the Chelsea Mews House in LondonBut as the project progressed, the studio was asked to extend its remit to the entire residence to create a more holistic scheme.
      “Chelsea Mews House highlights that large spaces aren’t always needed,” Bindloss Dawes told Dezeen. “It’s about creating something pragmatic and beautiful that clients will treasure.”
      “This is a small terraced house, and we’ve elevated it by bringing in daylight and giving it a sense of volume and theatre.”

      The house now features a sunken concrete floor in the basementAs part of the renovation, Bindloss Dawes updated the three-storey house from a dark and cramped two-bedroom to a simplified one-bedroom layout, making the most of the awkward trapezoidal plan with its angular walls and junctions.
      Working within the planning constraints of a conservation area in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Bindloss Dawes dropped the level of the lower ground floor to create a more impressive space.
      The studio also added a new three-storey staircase”Digging down 50 centimetres unlocked the opportunity to create new volumes, which in a tight footprint goes a long way to enhancing the spatial quality,” the studio said.
      This newly created spaciousness at the lower level is accentuated by the addition of a lightwell that cuts through all three storeys of the home, connecting them via a custom staircase while drawing sunshine deep into the basement.
      The staircase traverses a full-height lightwell drawing sun into the interior”The previous configuration did the house a disservice,” Bindloss Dawes said. “It has wonderful bones that we have celebrated by opening up and creating a void, which draws light right into the depths of the space.”
      Meanwhile, a subtle glass extension projects approximately 50 centimetres beyond the rear facade into the garden to increase the sense of light and space without significantly altering the exterior.

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      A thoughtful and restrained material palette was crucial to the success of the project, according to Bindloss Dawes.
      “By embracing simplicity, maximising light and space, and employing a careful selection of materials, we’ve crafted a home that balances functionality with elegance,” the studio said.
      Venetian polished plaster in a Marmorino finish by Calfe Crimmings was used on the walls throughout the home, creating a sense of tactility.
      The steps are finished in European oak while the balusters are steelExpressed concrete brings a grounding element to the basement level, with concrete skirting that seamlessly extends onto the steps leading up into the courtyard garden.
      Concrete was also used to form the first flight of the new three-storey staircase, while the upper levels are finished in European oak to match the handrail.
      The steel balusters were painted in the same grey-based white by Farrow & Ball that was also used on woodwork and ceilings throughout the house.
      The bedrooms are hidden behind subtle pocket doorsTo eliminate visual breaks to the lightwell, pocket doors were strategically incorporated at the bedroom level.
      “The project exemplifies how highly detailed yet simple design can work to great effect within tight city footprints,” said Bindloss Dawes.
      The homeowner, a talented craftsman and metalworker, personally designed and created the lighting fixtures, adding a personal touch to the home.
      The home is a traditional mews house in ChelseaPrevious projects from Bindloss Dawes, which was founded by Oliver Bindloss and George Dawes in 2018, include a timber car barn for a collector of classic Porsches.
      The studio is based in Bruton – a village in Somerset that has drawn an increasingly metropolitan crowd in recent years after contemporary art gallery Hauser & Wirth opened an outpost in the area in 2014.
      The photography is by Building Narratives.

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      Wine-red kitchen forms centrepiece of Paris apartment by Hauvette & Madani

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      Interior design studio Hauvette & Madani has made a sumptuous wine-red kitchen the focus of this otherwise neutral apartment in Paris.

      The Republique apartment is set within a typical Haussmann-era building in the French capital’s 11th arrondissement and belongs to a family with two children.
      From the outset of the renovation, the clients called for the home to orbit around a “spectacular” atmospheric kitchen.
      A wine-red kitchen is the focal point of the Republique apartmentHauvette & Madani responded by using a striking colour scheme, rendering all of the kitchen’s linoleum cabinets and its curved breakfast island in a wine-red colour. The same shade was also applied to the ceiling but in a glossy lacquer.
      “We wanted a dark but joyful colour and ended up deciding on this substantial red,” founders Samantha Hauvette and Lucas Madani told Dezeen. “We also love the fact [the colour’s] eccentricity matches the rest of the calm and soft apartment.”

      Spaces are connected by travertine-framed doorwaysLustrous decorative elements such as an aged-mirror splashback and brass light were also introduced to the space, and a support column was wrapped in stainless steel.
      The room’s original wooden flooring was overlaid with travertine and Emperador marble tiling.
      Shades of beige can be seen throughout the living roomA travertine-framed doorway looks through to the adjacent living room, where walls were painted an oatmeal beige, matching a bean-shaped velvet sofa from French brand Pierre Augustin Rose.
      A pair of wriggly-edged oak coffee tables and a terracotta-coloured edition of French designer Pierre Paulin’s Ribbon chair were also used to dress the space.

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      The dining room next door is centred by an oval travertine table, around which steel-framed leather seats have been arranged. At the rear of the room is a tall white dresser inset with oak-lined niches where ornaments or artworks can be displayed.
      A Murano glass chandelier hangs from the ceiling, where ornate moulding was carefully preserved.
      The nearby dining room has a travertine table at its centreThe project also saw Hauvette & Madani refresh the parents’ bedroom, which now features 1930s-style lighting and a bespoke oak headboard. This winds around the back of the room and has arched cut-outs that accommodate bedside tables.
      A walnut-wood vanity cabinet and vintage Italian mirror were also fitted in its en-suite bathroom.
      A bespoke oak headboard was installed in the parents’ bedroomOften considered the heart of the home, the kitchen is where architects and designers enjoy getting playful with colour.
      Other examples include the kitchen inside Sans-Arc Studio’s Plaster Fun House, where a pink terrazzo breakfast island contrasts duck egg-blue cabinetry.
      And the kitchen within this Belgian apartment by Carmine Van Der Linden and Thomas Geldof features birch wood cupboards that were stained a murky hue of green.
      The photography is by Yannick Labrousse. 

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      W Budapest hotel occupies 19th-century Drechsler Palace

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      Interior design studios Bowler James Brindley and Bánáti + Hartvig have transformed a 140-year-old neo-Renaissance building in central Budapest into the latest outpost from hotel chain W Hotels.

      W Budapest is set inside the 1886 Drechsler Palace designed by architects Ödön Lechner and Gyula Pártos, previously home to a grand cafe and the headquarters of the Hungarian State Ballet Academy.
      Bowler James Brindley and Bánáti + Hartvig have renovated Drechsler PalaceWorking with local studio Bánáti + Hartvig, London-based Bowler James Brindley (BJB) wanted to draw out the glamorous history of the building, which had stood empty for 15 years before being acquired by W Hotels’ owner Marriott International.
      BJB aimed to “playfully modernise” the interiors while drawing on the architecture of the surrounding area on Andrássy Avenue – a UNESCO World Heritage site that’s also home to the Hungarian State Opera House.
      The building now houses the 151-room W Budapest hotelAlongside 151 rooms and suites, the building now houses a restaurant, lounge, spa and speakeasy.

      “The challenge from the outset was not to be overawed by the beauty and strength of the building,” BJB partner Ian Bayliss told Dezeen.
      “Many original details of Drechsler Palace were studied and re-imagined, as were original colours and textures. Protected architecture has been carefully restored and celebrated, and original glazed tiles have been reused.”
      Gridded metal screens surround the beds in the guest roomsCentral to BJB’s conversion was the re-establishment of the palace’s two original entrances. This allowed the studio to free up the spaces bordering Andrassy Avenue and create a “living room” within the building’s light-filled inner courtyard, which has been enclosed by a glass roof.
      Tasked with modernising the building’s interiors while adhering to heritage protection rules, BJB made what it calls “second skin” interventions, which included the creation of new “corridors” within the palace’s ornate arches using freestanding, fret-cut installations.
      In the bathrooms, checkerboard tiles reference Hungary’s affiliation with chess”We wanted to respect the fabric and ‘skin’ of Drechsler Palace so we set about designing spaces, which created a new atmosphere while not touching the beautifully restored fabric,” Bayliss explained.
      The studio took the same approach to the restoration of the palace’s vaulted basement spa, which uses “Houdini-inspired” mirror illusions to create a feeling of never-ending space.

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      Curving bronze metal installations follow the vaulted ceilings, while dimly lit treatment rooms were inserted within the natural spaces left by existing columns.
      “In homage to Houdini, the treatment rooms are completely mirror-clad and essentially disappear, literally reflecting the existing architecture and the new second-skin installations,” Bayliss said, referencing Hungarian-born magician Harry Houdini.
      Turquoise wall panelling is contrasted with gold-toned detailsIn the guest rooms, turquoise wall panelling is contrasted with the gold-toned screens that wrap the beds, while mirrored checkerboard doors with brass details nod to Hungary’s long ties to the game of chess.
      The chess theme continues in the bathrooms, where monochrome checkerboard tiling is offset by handmade terrazzo-lined double sinks and lightbulb-framed Hollywood mirrors that pay tribute to Hungarian-American socialite Zsa Zsa Gabor.
      “The combination of a beautiful free-standing French Renaissance-inspired building by a famous local architect with a modern, idiosyncratic interior inserted into it could only happen in Budapest,” Bayliss said.
      The hotel opens later this monthSet to open later this month, W Budapest follows the opening of the brand’s Rome outpost in 2021.
      Previous projects by Bowler James Brindley include several guest rooms at the W Barcelona and apartments on the lower levels of Herzog & de Meuron’s One Park Drive skyscraper in Canary Wharf.
      Other hotels recently featured on Dezeen include a “thoughtfully designed” brutalist hotel in Mexico and Capella Hotels’ Sydney outpost, which is housed within a heritage-listed former government building.
      The photography is courtesy of W Budapest. 

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      Shiftspace brings IM Pei rowhouse in Philadelphia back to “original vision”

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      US studio Shiftspace has renovated a rowhouse in Philadelphia originally designed by Chinese-American architect IM Pei, restoring its original qualities after decades of alterations.

      Designed by Pei as part of a row of houses in the 1950s, the three-storey unit in the Society Hill neighbourhood had undergone several renovations and extensions over the years.
      Shiftspace was tasked with paring back these alterations to restore Pei’s original vision while enhancing it with contemporary details.
      Shiftspace has renovated an IM Pei-designed rowhouse in Philadelphia”Understanding Pei’s original vision for these houses, we approached this project with a sense of reverence that allowed us to see our design as enhancements to that original vision rather than starting from a blank canvas,” said Shiftspace partner Tim Barnes.
      Rowhouses are common in Philadelphia and sometimes referred to colloquially as “rowhomes”. Much of the city’s housing of this typology was built in the late-18th and early-19th centuries.

      According to Shiftspace, Pei designed the Society Hill townhouses to “bridge the gap” between these brick rowhomes and his nearby condominium, Society Hill Towers.
      It was originally built in the 1950sThe original exterior of the home has been retained. It consists of a mostly brick facade punctuated at the street-facing side by a large window with a small steel balcony.
      At the top of the home is a band of concrete-framed clerestory windows.
      Wooden louvres replace wallsInside, a central staircase that reaches from the basement to the third storey is essential to the redesign. Cleaving to Pei’s vision, Shiftspace has reoriented the home around this spiral stair and introduced a series of open-concept living spaces.
      The updated floorplans follow a typical format, with public spaces on the first three floors and three bedrooms on the fourth.
      At ground level, a curved breakfast nook with banquet seating leads to a kitchen that sits between the central staircase and a wall, and back into a dining area that has access to a garden patio. Here, some solid walls have been replaced with wooden louvres.
      The home is oriented around a spiral staircaseAbove are a living room and a study, separated by the staircase, as well as rearranged bedrooms and bathrooms.
      Two of the bedrooms on the top floor share a bathroom, while the main sleeping space has an ensuite. The bathrooms are tucked into spaces attached to the central core.
      “Our design reverted back to Pei’s original concept using a centralized core for all circulation, bath and mechanical spaces while reconfiguring for a master suite, kitchen, and entry area,” said founding partner Mario Gentile.

      “With IM Pei’s death, the last of the modern monument makers has passed”

      The studio added a new frame to the oculus at the top of the staircase that circulates additional light to the largely windowless structure. It also added skylights to the bedrooms.
      Minimising divides between rooms also allowed for further circulation throughout the home and for more light to penetrate the lower levels from the oculus.
      Shiftspace wanted to honour Pei’s original visionThe design was geared towards a more active lifestyle, which led to the addition of bike storage tucked away into nooks in the basement and on the ground floor.
      Shiftspace completed the renovation with a light-toned colour palette for the more public spaces and darker hues for the bedrooms and study.
      Pei was born in Guangzhou, China in 1917 and emigrated to the United States in 1935, where he founded a studio today known as Pei Cobb Freed & Partners. He designed a number of noteworthy buildings including Dallas City Hall and the Grand Louvre pyramid in Paris.
      Other buildings of his to be renovated include the Eskenazi Museum in Indiana.

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