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    David Thulstrup decorates Ikoyi restaurant with copper walls and curved metal-mesh ceiling

    Copenhagen-based designer David Thulstrup drew on spice-making processes when designing the interior of London’s Ikoyi restaurant, which features a variety of materials including copper and oak.

    The 150-square-metre restaurant, which has a menu based on seasonal British produce and spices from sub-Saharan west Africa, is located inside the brutalist 180 The Strand building in central London.
    Studio David Thulstrup has clad London’s Ikoyi restaurant in copper sheetsThulstrup completely renovated the interior, adding panels of a specially-designed metal-mesh weave that curve up from the restaurant’s windows and cover the ceiling. The ceiling design was informed by the process of spice production.
    “I was inspired by sifting spices and thought the mesh could both capture and reflect light coming from the outside, the street light in the evening and sunlight in the daytime, but also be respectful to the exterior,” Thulstrup told Dezeen. “The lights from inside the restaurant will be captured and ‘sifted’ towards the street.”
    Decorative metal mesh was used to cover the ceilingThulstrup also layered materials to create a restaurant interior that references the “boldness and intensity of the gastronomy” delivered by Ikoyi’s founders Jeremy Chan and Ire Hassan-Odukale.

    The restaurant walls were lined with oxidised copper sheets finished with beeswax, while the floors were covered in Gris de Catalan limestone that was flamed and brushed to develop a hammered surface.
    Ikoyi is located inside a brutalist buildingThe custom-built furniture and built-in joinery were made from British oak, while banquettes, chairs and wall panels were lined with ginger-coloured leather.
    “I always work with contrasts and I like honest juxtapositions of materials that activate your senses – the copper that is warm in colour but cold when you touch it, the warm natural ginger leather against the colder steel mesh and the rough Catalan limestone floor against the warm English brown oak,” Thulstrup said.
    The colour palette was kept warm and earthyThe earthy, rustic hues chosen by Thulstrup for the interior were informed both by the restaurant’s food and the building in which it is located.
    “Ikoyi is placed on the ground level of the beautiful and very active brutalist building 180 The Strand,” he said.

    David Thulstrup revamps Donum Home at Sonoma County winery

    “The restaurant’s gastronomy plays an essential role in the palette as well,” he added. “It’s not an interpretation of a dish but an exchange in colour and tracing ingredients back to their natural form and colour.”
    On arrival, visitors to the restaurant are also greeted by a large copper-clad fridge that shows the produce served at Ikoyi, with slabs of meat and fresh fish hanging from meathooks.
    Large copper fridges showcase fresh produceThulstrup wanted the fridges to remind people of where their food is coming from.
    “[The idea was] that we know where a piece of fish comes from and that we are aware what a piece of meat looks like,” he said. “It traces the story back to when the animal was alive and underscores that we have to take good care of them and appreciate them.”
    “I thought it would be a modern interpretation and celebration of our awareness of food.”
    Wooden and leather-clad furniture was used for the interiorThulstrup founded his studio in 2009 and it is based in Copenhagen, Denmark. The studio works in architecture, design and interiors.
    Previous projects by the studio include an office in Borough Yards, London, and the revamp of a winery in California’s Sonoma County.
    The photography is by Irina Boersma.

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    David Thulstrup brings industrial colours and textures into Borough Yards office

    The brick arches and warehouse buildings of London’s Borough Market informed the materials and furnishings of The Office Group’s latest workspace, designed by Copenhagen-based Studio David Thulstrup.

    Located at Borough Yards, the office forms part of a new retail development designed by architecture studio SPPARC in the spaces in and around an old railway viaduct.
    The colour palette takes cues from the surrounding brick architectureInterior designer David Thulstrup and his team designed the interiors to subtly match the colours and textures of the surroundings, using earthy shades, metal details and largely pattern-free surfaces.
    The ambition was to resonate with the industrial aesthetic, but to still create spaces that felt warm and comfortable.
    Details include tinted glass screens and colour-block rugsKey inspirations were the brick railway arches and the green glass market canopy, which are echoed in details that include high-gloss green wall surfaces and block-printed rugs.

    “I really enjoy when I get to connect myself to somewhere that has a sense of a place, and that has history that I can tap into, and then extract those essences into the project,” said Thulstrup.
    “To me, the brand DNA of The Office Group (TOG) is that they allow the architects to incorporate their own design philosophy into a project. I think that’s what I’ve succeeded with here,” he added.
    The building offers a range of different workspaces and meeting areasThulstrup has worked on a number of high-profile interior projects, including the Noma restaurant in Copenhagen.
    TOG at Borough Yards is the first space that he has designed for The Office Group, which has more than 50 workspaces across London and Germany.

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    The 4,700-square-metre workspace spans two buildings – a converted former warehouse and a new brick-clad block – and is organised over five floors.
    At its entrance sits a double-height lobby, framed by a large right-angled reception desk in brushed metal and a gently curving couch.
    The lobby features a brushed metal reception desk and high-gloss green wallsThis leads up to a range of workspaces and facilities, including private offices, flexible co-working spaces, meeting rooms, breakout areas, phone booths, an audio room and a Peloton workout studio.
    Colours vary subtly between spaces; some are dominated by brown and gold tones, while others work with monochrome shades of black and grey.
    The colour palette includes a range of soft grey and brown shadesThulstrup created several bespoke furniture and lighting designs, combining different wood tones with Kvadrat textiles.
    “I like the idea of working with custom-made objects, my own productions, others’ designs, even sometimes vintage pieces – melting these different levels together creates a really beautiful atmosphere,” said the designer.
    “I want to make sure that when people come back to this place after five years that they still feel it is relevant,” he continued. “It’s about creating an inviting, inclusive, quality-driven atmosphere, and also a place where people want to stay.”
    Some spaces are picked out in blackTOG at Borough Yards is the latest in a series of workspaces that The Office Group has unveiled since the pandemic, following 210 Euston Road by Universal Design Studio and Liberty House by SODA.
    The brand aims to develop a unique design for its spaces to reflect the character of their settings.
    David Thulstrup designed bespoke furniture for the projectNasim Koerting, head of design for The Office Group, said this latest offering “respects and responds to the rich architectural and industrial history of the area without being in thrall to it”.
    “We’ve created a space that takes inspiration from its surroundings, while serving the modern-day needs of the design- conscious workplace,” she said.
    Photography is by Ben Anders.

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    David Thulstrup revamps Donum Home at Sonoma County winery

    Granite, oak and rattan are among the materials found in a California winery’s hospitality building that has been refurbished by Danish designer David Thulstrup.

    The Donum Home facility is part of the 200-acre (81-hectare) Donum Estate, which sits within the rolling hills of Sonoma County, just north of San Pablo Bay.
    The Donum Home winery building features rattan elementsFounded in 2001, the winery is well known for its pinot noirs, along with the dozens of distinctive sculptures that dot its estate. The collection features work by famed artists such as Doug Aitken, Yayoi Kusama and Ai Weiwei.
    Donum Home – which functions as a venue for tastings, dining and entertainment – opened in 2017 with a design by Matt Hollis of MH Architects in San Francisco. The modern-style building has a crisp profile and white cladding.
    Sonoma County’s hills can be seen from the winery
    In advance of the winery’s 20th anniversary this year, designer David Thulstrup – who leads an eponymous studio in Copenhagen – was brought in to freshen up the interior.
    The project entailed adding new finishes and decor, along with reconfiguring the space to form three new tasting rooms. The aim was to create an environment that felt refined yet relaxed through a careful use of light and local materials.

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    “The outcome is an honest, simple and not over-designed place that reflects its surroundings, while also paying an ode to my Scandinavian roots without any Nordic clichés,” said Thulstrup.
    Rooms feature neutral colours and earthy materials, such as oak-and-rattan screens designed by Thulstrup, and walls and floors covered in oak.
    A rounded walnut table is surrounded by woven chairs in a tasting roomIn one room, a rounded walnut dining table by e15 is surrounded by woven chairs by Thulstrup. An exuberant light fixture from Louis Poulsen hangs overhead.
    In another room, a streamlined walnut table by Thulstrup is paired with a row of simple pendants designed by architect Peter Zumthor for Viabizzuno.
    Original artworks feature all through the buildingFor the building’s great room, where skylights usher in soft daylight, Thulstrup created a table made of California granite.
    Floating near the ceiling are three mirrored-glass balloons that were created by Danish artist Jeppe Hein. The sculpture, called Three Colours for Donum, moves gently with the wind and refracts sunlight.
    Skylights bring soft light into the building’s great room”Their mirrored surfaces reflect the surroundings and you at the same time, so you become a part of the artwork,” said Hein.
    The Donum Home also features a custom, hand-blown-glass vase by Danish artist Lene Bødker, and artwork by Chinese artists Yue Minjun and Liu Xiaodong. There also is a neon piece, titled Surrounded by You, created by UK artist Tracey Emin.
    A neon work by Tracy Emin can be seen through a doorwayStudio David Thulstrup has designed a wide range of spaces and decor, including a photographer’s studio inside a former factory building and the Michelin-star Noma restaurant in Copenhagen.
    Last year, the studio teamed up with Danish furniture brand Møbel to create a pair of tables – one made entirely from ceramic and the other from powder-coated steel.
    Photography is by Eric Petschek.
    Project credits:
    Designer: David ThulstrupStyling: Dung NgoClient: The Donum Estate

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