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      Tomás Saraceno adapts Serpentine gallery to welcome all species

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      Argentinian artist Tomás Saraceno has changed the HVAC and electrical system of the Serpentine gallery in London, in an effort to make an exhibition for all the nearby species.

      Titled Web(s) of Life, the exhibition presents some of the artist’s most recent and well-known environmentally focused works, while also encompassing interventions into the building itself.
      These interventions aim to make the Serpentine South building housing the exhibition more porous and responsive to its setting in Kensington Gardens, challenging anthropocentric perspectives that only consider the interests of humans and not any other beings.
      Tomás Saraceno has made changes to the Serpentine South building for his exhibitionSculptures made for the enjoyment of a variety of different animals are placed on the building’s grounds, facade and roof as well as inside the building, while complex webs woven by multiple types of spiders working “in collaboration” with Saraceno feature inside the dimly lit galleries.
      “You see that many architectures today are somehow not so inclusive of what is happening on the planet,” said Saraceno, who trained as an architect. “I’m very happy to think that for the first time at the Serpentine, there are many spiderweb pavilions.”

      “It’s a little bit about trying to think how animal architecture could enter into the discourse and how we need to have a much more equilibrated and balanced way of building cities today on Earth,” he told Dezeen.
      Saraceno’s Cloud Cities sculptures can be found in the groundsTo make the gallery interior more comfortable for spiders and other insects, the equipment that controls the building’s temperature and humidity has been switched off and some doorways opened to allow for free movement of both air and animal life.
      Given the exhibition will run throughout the British summertime, this might mean some discomfort for human visitors – but within limits. According to the Serpentine’s chief curator Lizzie Carey-Thomas, the gallery will allow the staff on its floor to decide when conditions are too hot for them to work safely or for visitors to have an enjoyable time.
      At that point, the gallery will close rather than switch on the air-conditioning, encouraging visitors to enjoy the installations outside in the park and under the trees.
      The sculptures also feature inside the galleryA further intervention by Saraceno comes in the form of a new solar array on the Serpentine’s roof, which will power all the films and lights in the exhibition.
      The destructive effects of lithium mining on the environment and Indigenous communities is a key theme of the exhibition. So Saraceno and the Serpentine are avoiding the use of a lithium battery and instead embracing the intermittency of solar power by adapting the exhibition’s energy use to the level of sunshine outside.

      Tomás Saraceno installs Aerocene metallic orbs in Paris’ Grand Palais

      On cloudy or partly cloudy days, films will run less frequently and lights will be dimmed. On particularly sunless days, the films may switch to audio-only, while some lights will switch off altogether.
      “The irony there is that on the extreme heat days with lots of sun, we will have full power but we won’t be able to open the exhibition,” said Carey-Thomas.
      As the Serpentine South building is heritage listed, both Carey-Thomas and Saraceno say the process for making any alterations was complex and drawn out, with approval for the solar panels taking two years and other plans to remove windows and doors quickly abandoned.
      The exhibition environment is meant to be more comfortable for spiders, whose webs are on displayThe works within the exhibition include Saraceno’s Cloud Cities sculptures, which feature compartments specifically designed for different animals such as birds, insects, dogs, hedgehogs and foxes.
      The artist is also screening a film that documents one of the instalments of his Aerocene project, which involves making an entirely fossil-free aircraft powered purely by air heated by the sun with no need for batteries, helium, hydrogen or lithium.
      In the film, the Aerocene team completes the world’s first piloted solar-powered flight, flying a balloon sculpture over the highly reflective salt flats in Salinas Grandes.
      A film in the exhibition documents Saraceno’s fossil-free flight projectThere is also a work created specifically for children, called Cloud Imagination, which is accessed through a dog-shaped door that’s too small for most adults to enter.
      Saraceno and the Serpentine describe the Web(s) of Life exhibition as having been created “in collaboration” with a host of different contributors, both human and non-human.
      These include the communities of Salinas Grandes and Laguna de Guayatayoc in Argentina, spider diviners in Cameroon, the communities around Aerocene and Saraceno’s Arachnophilia project, and the lifeforms found in the Royal Parks surrounding the Serpentine, which will continue to evolve the works over the next three months.
      The films may run less frequently when the levels of solar energy are affected by cloud coverThe artist and gallery also want to extend the ethos of the exhibition to the potential sale of the artworks by developing a scheme called partial common ownership or, Saraceno hopes, “partial common stewardship”, which means any buyer would “co-own” the work along with a designated species or community.
      Another recent artwork to have explored ideas of intermittency in energy and design is Solar Protocol, which looks at the potential of a solar-powered internet.
      The photography is by Studio Tomás Saraceno.
      Tomás Saraceno In Collaboration: Web(s) of Life will take place at Serpentine South in London, UK from 1 June to 10 September 2023 and culminate with a day-long festival on Saturday, 9 September including a weather-dependent Aerocene flight. For more information about events, exhibitions and talks, visit Dezeen Events Guide.

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      Pirajean Lees creates Arts and Crafts-style interior for Mayfair restaurant

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      London design studio Pirajean Lees referenced Mayfair’s pastoral past and created a series of spaces that nod to the idea of a Georgian manor house when designing restaurant 20 Berkeley.

      Pirajean Lees aimed to build a story around the space and its sequence of many small rooms, while tapping into the restaurant’s British produce-led culinary approach.
      Pirajean Lees has completed the 20 Berkeley restaurant in Mayfair”The restaurant is situated in the heart of Mayfair, a place once on the cusp of the city and countryside,” Pirajean Lees told Dezeen.
      “The farming history of the area and its connection to the surrounding rural lands is prevalent throughout the project and paramount to the dining experience.”
      The restaurant features a series of cosy rooms on the first floorPirajean Lees wanted to put nature and craft at the heart of this design project to align it with the ethos of Creative Restaurant Group, the restaurant’s founders.

      “This led us to build on the strong connection of an imagined Mayfair Georgian manor house and its rural lands, which would have been used to grow produce,” the studio said.
      “A central staircase leads to rooms usually found in a traditional family home, such as the drawing room, music room, pantry, orangery and salon. Each room has its own character whilst belonging to the one property.”
      Among them is the music roomOn the upper-ground floor are the richly designed reception and main dining rooms.
      The lower-ground level houses a 14-seat private room with its own exclusive lounge and dining area, alongside the kitchen, wine cellar and main bar, The Nipperkin.
      The design of the interiors references the arts and crafts movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
      Stained glass features in the drawing room”At 20 Berkeley, we have developed a layered story of handmade details and tactile finishes that exude elegance,” said Pirajean Lees.
      “The project’s expression is rooted in the traditions of craftsmanship and how the process of making decorative objects and furniture should showcase the beauty of both its materials and construction.”
      Antique mirrors were used to surround the building’s columnsThe resulting aesthetic is detailed, with a palette of rich, warm tones including ambers, ochres and dark reds, used across upholstery and textural wallcoverings. Floor tiles have been hand-crafted in Wales and feature clay embedded with fossils.
      Bespoke joinery work was utilised throughout the space, including for the wall panelling, dowelled ceilings and an English oak staircase.

      Pirajean Lees and Olly Bengough design “timeless” interiors for House of Koko members’ club

      The project also features bespoke elements that were added to bring a sense of opulence to the various spaces.
      These include a pantry, in painted timber, that provides a strong focal point of the upper floor. Here, chefs prepare dishes on the pantry island, “inviting guests to witness the chefs’ craft, as one would do in one’s home, whilst hosting guests for dinner,” said Pirajean Lees.
      In the orangery, a bespoke pickling cupboard, made from sapele wood and marble, serves as “a pleasing curiosity”, used by the chefs to store jars of vegetables for their recipes.
      An English oak staircase leads down to 20 Berkeley’s lower ground levelThe bespoke dining tables and chairs were made of oak, while the chairs have been traditionally upholstered for maximum comfort.
      “The bespoke and craft elements bring depth to the project, anchoring it in its strong narrative and creating timeless interiors,” said Pirajean Lees.
      A private dining room is located on the lower ground floorBespoke stained glass, handcrafted in a North London studio, is another of the restaurant’s features.
      Used in the reception and drawing room, the stained glass has been strategically positioned, backing onto the busy central bar to give a sense of movement and energy.
      In front of the windows, it warms the light coming into the rooms to create an immersive atmosphere.
      Mixed clay tiles are laid across the floor”The stained glass introduces shadows and reflections, which change throughout the day and are different in each room,” said Pirajean Lees.
      “As per each of our projects, the tailored finishes, joinery and surfaces here, have been carefully created to ensure optimum use of the space by the restaurateur and their guests.”
      Other hospitality projects from the studio include an ornate sushi restaurant in Dubai with interiors informed by 1920s Japan and a members club in London, housed inside the iconic music venue Koko.
      The photography is by Polly Tootal.

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      Fettle channels Soho’s “grittier” years at 1 Warwick members’ club

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      Interiors studio Fettle drew on the neo-baroque architecture of this Edwardian building in London’s Soho when converting it into a members’ club, as well as nodding to the area’s colourful history of the 1950s and 60s.

      Owned by Maslow’s, the group behind Fitzrovia club Mortimer House, 1 Warwick features mid-century furniture and lighting along with bespoke designs that reimagine the furniture of the period.
      Fettle has designed the 1 Warwick members’ club in LondonThe mix includes jaunty elements such as splayed-leg easy chairs and scallop-edged rattan lighting.
      “During this period of history, Soho was much grittier than we find it today, so we wanted to underplay the more elevated finishes that you would typically find in a members’ club,” Fettle’s director Andy Goodwin told Dezeen.
      “We have referenced the less polished nature of Soho in this period with raw plaster wall finishes and exposed brick.”

      The club has a rooftop restaurant called YasminFettle juxtaposes these references with some influences from the neo-baroque mansion itself, reworking its sense of assured comfort in a contemporary way with richly toned wood panelling and elaborate chandeliers.
      “We wanted to ensure that we referenced this period within the final design,” Goodwin said. “We simplified a traditional Edwardian baroque skirting and architrave style within the bespoke joinery that was designed for the ground and first floors.”
      “Typically, buildings of a similar age had common features, including bold geometric floor patterns within the entrances. And as such we reimagined a pattern from the period in the lobby of 1 Warwick.”
      Its wraparound roof terrace offers views across SohoWhile drawing on the history of the building and the area, Fettle worked hard to ensure that the club feels fresh, welcoming and contemporary.
      “We have mixed furniture, lighting and accessories from a variety of different eras and curated a space that feels relaxed and residential in its aesthetic,” he continued.
      “When designing furniture specifically for the project, we referenced more traditional designs, however. We looked at the details through a modern lens to make the space feel familiar yet contemporary.”

      Fettle designs apartment block The Gessner to resemble a hotel

      Set over six floors, the crowning glory of 1 Warwick is the rooftop bar and restaurant Yasmin with its wraparound roof terrace and views across Soho.
      Here, pink mohair-upholstered bar stools nestle against a wood-clad marble-topped bar while the menu is Middle Eastern, inspired by executive chef Tom Cenci’s time in Istanbul.
      Two lounge spaces – the Living Room and adjoining Den – are at the heart of the club, where Fettle used an earthy-toned palette, along with exposed brick walls and geometric patterned rugs to bring a sense of warmth to the interior.
      The club has several co-working areas”We wanted to let the existing architectural features be visible within the final design to create a more neutral backdrop, onto which we layered playful choices across the furniture and fittings,” said Goodwin.
      “We used deep, saturated, colourful fabrics for the upholstered pieces and we have looked to mix mohairs and velvets with more vibrant leathers and patterned fabrics to give an eclectic feel to the space,” said Goodwin.
      In the daytime, 1 Warwick offers spaces to suit different kinds of working styles, from private studies and rentable desks to the Pied-à-Terre – an open-plan workspace featuring long, library-style tables and comfortable lounge seating.
      Members can also work in private meeting roomsAt ground level, there’s the neighbourhood bistro and bar Nessa, open to all and offering a playful take on British classics while the more intimate, horseshoe-shaped bar serves up its own menu of small plates.
      With a colour palette of warm, autumnal tones and a material mix of exposed brick, wood panelling and marble-topped tables, the atmosphere here is welcoming and down-to-earth.
      The Nessa restaurant is set on the ground floor and open to the publicFounded in 2013, Fettle has a long history in hospitality design with previous projects including the Schwan Locke Hotel in Munich, which was conceived as an homage to early German modernism.
      Elsewhere in London, the studio was also responsible for designing The Gessner apartment block to resemble a hotel, complete with a cafe and co-working area.
      The photography is by Simon Brown.

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      Birch Selsdon hotel takes over 19th-century mansion in Croydon

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      British hotel chain Birch has opened an outpost in south London, with grounds rewilded by designer Sebastian Cox and interiors conceived by local studios A-nrd and Sella Concept.

      Birch Selsdon is housed in a 19th-century mansion in the borough of Croydon and accommodates 181 rooms alongside a wellness space and lido, co-working facilities and a medley of restaurants and bars.
      Birch Selsdon takes over a 19th-century mansionThe building was first turned into a hotel in the 1920s, with slapdash extensions and modifications added over the following century.
      Local studios A-nrd and Sella Concept took a “restorative approach” to the interior works, stripping back much of the existing fit-out to allow the building’s original architecture to come to the fore.
      The building’s original stone walls and bas-relief ceilings can be seen in the lobbyRestoration was also the focus for Sebastian Cox, who developed a woodland management plan for the hotel’s grounds as well as a rewilding strategy for its 18-hole golf course.

      This will involve introducing grazing pigs and ponies, which can naturally distribute seeds and shape growing vegetation. The former fairways of the golf course will become wetlands, while the sandy bunkers will eventually attract small reptiles and other animals.
      Timber from the grounds was used to create the shingled reception desksCox has also turned trees harvested from the grounds into a series of furnishings for the hotel, creating affordable, locally produced products while providing ecosystem benefits for the woodland.
      “Managed woodlands have higher biodiversity because when you harvest the trees, light gets onto the woodland floor and other vegetation can grow,” Cox explained during a recent episode of Dezeen’s Climate Salon podcast.
      “So we can categorically say that our furniture actually makes a net contribution. It doesn’t just harvest materials, it actually contributes to the spaces that the materials come from.”
      An arched nook discovered during the hotel’s renovation is now a dining spaceAmong Cox’s furniture contributions is a pair of shingled timber reception desks in the entrance lobby, backed by an ombre curtain that mirrors the shifting seasonal hues of the landscape around Birch Selsdon.
      The lobby’s floral bas-relief ceiling was preserved alongside the original masonry walls, which peek out from behind the curtain.
      Peach-coloured surfaces appear in Birch Selsdon’s Meadow BarDotted throughout the space are moss-green velvet sofas as well as wicker armchairs, potted plants and vintage petal-shaped pendant lamps made from Murano glass.
      When guests are hungry, they can head to the hotel’s all-day restaurant Vervain, which serves a farm-to-table menu.

      Red Deer and Jan Hendzel Studio combine ceramics, beaten copper and recycled plastic for hotel valet stands

      The space is anchored by two huge, arched banquettes featuring seat cushions upholstered in an abstract camouflage print and sawn-timber backrests, which were also sourced from the hotel’s woodland.
      Oversized rice paper lanterns hang from the ceiling overhead, which is painted a rich apricot shade to highlight the existing ornate bas-relief.
      The hotel includes another bar called The Snug with wood-panelled wallsFor drinks, guests can head to the hotel’s peachy-hued Meadow Bar or to the Snug, which has a slightly more grown-up aesthetic thanks to the dark, wood-panelled walls that are original to the building.
      The space is dressed with vintage travertine coffee tables and an array of lounge chairs in sumptuous colours like ochre, olive green and damson purple.
      Chequerboard flooring in The Orangery nods to the Victorian periodTo one side of the room lies a curved seating nook that was uncovered during the renovation works. Its interior was rendered in blush pink to foster a warm, intimate dining ambience.
      There’s also the option to relax in The Orangery, a light-filled space centred by a wiggly cobalt-blue sofa. Terracotta tiles are arranged in a traditional checkerboard pattern across the floor in a nod to the building’s Victorian past.
      Bedrooms are filled with textural details like linen curtains and sisal rugsThe aesthetic of the hotel’s communal spaces is maintained in the guest bedrooms, which are finished with textural decorative elements like linen curtains and hand-blown glass lamps that cast dappled light across the limewashed walls.
      Larger suites come complete with lounge areas, dressed with plump armchairs and sisal rugs.
      Timber from the hotel’s woods was also used to produce 352 bedside tables for the rooms, all crafted in Cox’s Kent workshop.
      The bedside tables are also made with timber from the hotel’s groundsThe launch of Birch Selsdon comes just three years after the opening of the inaugural Birch branch near Hertfordshire.
      It was designed by architecture studio Red Deer to challenge the notion of a luxury hotel and features a series of pared-back rooms with quirky, unfinished details.
      The photography is by Adam Lynk.

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      EBBA Architects transforms former jellied-eel restaurant into eyewear store

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      Local studio EBBA Architects has designed a store for eyewear brand Cubitts that preserves and draws on the original 1930s interior of the traditional F Cooke restaurant on London’s Broadway Market.

      The restaurant, which sold cockney dishes such as jellied eel and pie and mash, had been located on the east London street since 1900 but was given a modernist update in the 1930s.
      The Cubitts store on Broadway Market is located inside a former restaurantEBBA Architects turned the space into a 145-square-metre Cubitts store but kept almost all the original interiors of the Grade II-listed restaurant, which had been unoccupied since 2019.
      F Cooke’s marble tables were given new legs made from stained birch plywood and now hold eyewear display cases in a sunny hue that matches the original wall tiles.
      Pale yellow tiles clad the walls”The tables are original but we designed the legs to kind of make it feel like a new feature,” EBBA Architects founder Benni Allan told Dezeen.

      “The table has just been scrubbed up,” he said. “Imagine how many nice pies have been eaten on that table.”
      “I think what’s nice is that everything below [the tables] has had this quite warm treatment to bring in a nice texture and tone, and then everything above is much lighter.”
      Different coloured material samples are displayed on wooden shelvesThe studio also kept the original stained-glass windows and the counter that used to serve food, turning it into a point of sale, while a repair station for glasses fills the window facing the street.
      Pale yellow tiles bordered by bands of contrasting blue and turquoise tiles decorate the walls. These are the original interior from 1930 and were cleaned using “loads of elbow grease”, Allan said.
      The former food counter was turned into a point of saleIn the main showroom of the two-storey store, the studio also kept the restaurant’s mirrors, only removing one to create a display case and sales point.
      “All the additions are kind of appendages or accoutrements on the base of the original structure,” Cubitts founder Tom Broughton told Dezeen.
      An orange staircase leads to the lower floorDownstairs, EBBA Architects made more interventions, as the space was dark and hadn’t been furnished to the same level as the main upstairs space.
      “It was really quite dark and dingy down there, so the colours from upstairs informed this really bright orange in the staircase,” Allan said.

      Cubitts eyewear store in Leeds taps into seminal design movements throughout history

      The studio used stained plywood to create a sliding wood screen with a square pattern based on the tiles in the main store, as well as creating a bright-coloured staff room with a “secret door”.
      It also added tiled floors with a decorative pattern in a colour palette that references that of the restaurant.
      “There’s that really beautiful intricate detailing upstairs, so we wanted to sort of mirror that down here with these different patterns in the floor,” Allan said.
      EBBA Architects designed a sliding door for the eye-test roomDownstairs also holds the eyewear testing centre, which is located underneath the street above.
      Broughton and Allan tried to keep as many of the original details from the restaurant as possible. The tank where the live eels were once kept before being boiled is left standing in an outdoor space downstairs and the restaurant’s sign remains above the front door.
      The store has retained its original signage and one of the benchesOne of the benches, on which people used to sit and eat, has been placed outside the store. And the Cooke family behind the restaurant chain – which still has two outposts – has lent Cubitts some of its original pie tins alongside the bowls used to serve jellied eels and a picture of founder Bob Cooke.
      The Cubitts Broadway Market store is located in an area that has become increasingly gentrified over the past decade, with many local shops being taken over by chains.
      Original stained-glass windows decorate the interiorThough some people have been nostalgic about the time when the store was a pie-and-mash shop, Allan and Broughton said there have also been positive reactions to the refurbishment
      “People have actually been really chuffed that it stayed the same,” Allan said.
      “Someone could come in here in a decade or two and actually put it back into a pie and mash shop. Even though [the changes] feel purposeful, it’s quite a light touch. If anything, we’ve kind of given it a new lease of life, because it was actually pretty grimy.”
      A repair station sits in the windowThis is also the general tactic for Cubitts, Broughton said. When looking for new stores, the brand focuses on finding spaces that have existing interiors, with other outposts set in a 19th-century townhouse in Belgravia and a Victorian arcade in Leeds.
      “Ideally, [the store] already has this existing structure and framework that you can clean up and add a bit of product and a few fittings to,” he said.
      “And that’s the really nice thing, right? If you can take something that’s already beautiful, give it a new lease of life and make it relevant to someone today, that’s really cool.”

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      Five highlights from Zaha’s Moonsoon: An Interior in Japan

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      The Zaha Hadid Foundation has opened an exhibition about Zaha Hadid’s Moonsoon restaurant in Sapporo, Japan. Here, exhibitions officer and curator Johan Deurell selects five highlights from the show.

      Zaha’s Moonsoon: An Interior in Japan is a case study of architect Hadid’s first built project outside of the UK – the Moonsoon Bar and Restaurant in Sapporo, Japan, which was constructed in 1989.
      The exhibition offers a journey from the conception of the venue  – conveyed through a series of archival models, presentation documents and sketches – through to its built form, presented through images and one-to-one recommissioned furniture from the bar’s interior.
      “Our latest exhibition showcases the creative processes behind one of Zaha Hadid’s earliest and less well-known projects,” said Zaha Hadid Foundation director Paul Greenhalgh. “Moonsoon was created at the time of the incredible explosion of the Japanese economy, and the design boom that accompanied it.”
      “Japan provided opportunities for emerging architects to work on experimental projects. For the foundation, it is a chance for us to dive deep into the archives and highlight works rarely seen before.”

      Zaha Hadid’s first building in the Arab World photographed by Julien Lanoo

      Monsoon’s design referenced some of the early 20th-century avant-grade movements that emerged out of Russia, such as the works of Russian abstract artist Kazimir Malevich.
      Angular, twisting and geometric shapes were translated into functional architectural volumes and layers. Additional design references include the works of sculptor Alexander Calder, French liquor commercials from the 1950s and imagery of orange peel and pasta.
      Zaha’s Moonsoon: An Interior in Japan takes place at the Zaha Hadid Foundation headquarters in Clerkenwell, London, which functioned as Hadid’s headquarters from 1985 until her death in 2016.
      Read on for Deurell’s five highlights:

      Presentation case, acrylic and aluminium by Zaha Hadid Architects, 1989-90
      “The idea of our exhibition came about with the discovery of a Perspex briefcase in the archive. This briefcase was made by Daniel Chadwick as a container for the Moonsoon design concept.
      “It carried elements of model as well as 14 paintings, six perspective drawings and 13 collages shown in this exhibition. The case would be taken to the clients as a form of presentation strategy, where the works on paper would be laid out and the model assembled.”

      Presentation model, acrylic by Zaha Hadid Architects, 1989-90
      “This model, made by Daniel Chadwick, was created to illustrate a concept, rather than as a replica of the restaurant’s final form. Here an ‘orange peel’ shape swirls through the two floors, and the colourful shards represent the furniture and interior elements. At the time it was made, the interior and furniture designs had yet to be finalised.
      “Zaha Hadid Architects embraced the transparency of acrylic to make the relationship between interior and spatial elements in the model easier to view. In the future, digital models would provide the transparent layering effects that Hadid sought to achieve through the early use of acrylic.”

      Interior concepts, acrylic paint on black cartridge paper by Zaha Hadid Architects, 1989-90
      “This painting belongs to a suite of 14 paintings originally stored in the Perspex briefcase. Moonsoon’s concept was partially inspired by fire (for the first-floor bar) and ice (for the ground-floor restaurant), which is illustrated through the reds and blues in this painting. A swirling ‘orange peel’ shape represents the central furnace penetrating through the two floors, whereas splintered ‘ice shards’ symbolise tables.
      “Zaha Hadid Architects used paintings to explore concepts that could not be shown through conventional perspective drawings. Various team members contributed to the paintings. The works were derived from sketches, which had been transferred to tracing paper and then onto cartridge paper, and subsequently coloured in, often by Hadid herself. Their warped shapes and layering anticipated the possibilities later offered by CAD software.”
      [embedded content]
      Zaha’s Moonsoon, by Marwan Kaabour, 2023
      “Not everything in the show came from that briefcase. There were boxes upon boxes of archival material too. During the research phase, colleagues at Zaha Hadid Architects told me: ‘go find the little doodle’. That turned out to be a sheet of Arabic letterforms spelling out Zaha and Moonsoon, and the recurring swirly shape, which you see in the model and paintings.
      “With some help from Marwan Kaabour, who designed the graphic identity for the exhibition, I learnt that the swirl is a stylised version of the letter H in Zaha. Marwan has done some amazing work for Phaidon and V&A before and runs the Instagram account Takweer on queer narratives in the SWANA region. I asked him to make a video based upon the archival material we had found.
      “This snippet is taken from that video. It charts the development of Moonsoon’s ‘orange peel’ structure, from the brief to its final built form. Beginning with sketches of the words مونسون [Moonsoon] and زها [Zaha] based on Arabic letterforms, through references to orange peel, pasta, and the works of Alexander Calder, it concludes with their eventual translation into the technical drawings informing the construction, as well as images of the construction and built.”
      Photo by Paul WarcholSofa and tray table by Zaha Hadid Architects, 1989-90 (remade in 2014)
      “Finally, the exhibition includes a boomerang-shaped sofa from the bar. The furniture for Moonsoon employed intersecting curves and diagonal planes to create an interior landscape. Designed by Michael Wolfson, the differently sized sofas have interchangeable plug-in backrests and tray tables, which came in different colours and finishes.
      “Waiters could set the tables on their stands when delivering the drinks to guests. I am not sure how well this waiting method worked in practice, but it is interesting to think about this furniture as part of a design historical tradition of flexible seating landscapes. We know that Zaha was a fan of Verner Panton’s work, for example.”
      Zaha’s Moonsoon: An Interior in Japan is on show at the Zaha Hadid Foundation in London from 20 April until 22 July 2023. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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      The Mint List brings mid-century influences to north London family home

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      Interior design studio The Mint List has brought light, space and warmth to this Edwardian house in London with multiple extensions, a hidden playroom and plenty of tactile materials.

      The renovated end-of-terrace house in Kensal Rise belongs to a film-industry couple that wanted a cosy family home with mid-century elements, in particular referencing the work of designers Charles and Ray Eames.
      The Mint List has renovated and extended an Edwardian house in north London”The clients had a leaning towards mid-century style but they didn’t want that to overwhelm the scheme,” The Mint List founder Camilla Kelly told Dezeen.
      “The Eames House was a good mid-century reference in terms of encompassing warm, repurposed textures, a sense of scale and an abundance of light.”
      A new rear extension houses the home’s kitchen and dining spaceThe brief was to open up this formerly dark and “unremarkable” home and create an improved sense of flow.

      As well as adding two bedrooms and a small study in the newly converted loft, The Mint List created a rear extension to house the kitchen-dining space and absorbed the property’s former garage into the house, providing a mudroom, pantry and playroom.
      The custom-built kitchen island has two levelsThe playroom is cleverly concealed behind a bank of new storage in the hallway, which has also been enlarged by opening it up into the former porch.
      “There was huge importance given to light in the design,” said Kelly. “Wherever possible, we created tall windows benefiting from the south-facing aspect.”
      Bookshelves act as room dividers to form a hybrid library and snugThe house is full of custom-designed features and finishes at the request of the client.
      The floor uses unusually slim lengths of oak, laid at right angles to each other in huge grids, while the thresholds were distinguished with slender fins of brass that add subtle visual interest.
      The children’s playroom is hidden inside a wall of storage in the hallwayDrawing on the design language of mid-century furniture, the kitchen was completely custom-built for the space with a clean-lined, yet playfully asymmetric design.
      “We centralised the assembly and used high windows on either side of the cabinets to emphasise the cubic nature of the design,” said Kelly. “The asymmetric cubes that form the cabinets were built using walnut, with cream-painted doors for the covered storage.”

      The Mint List fits out London office with mid-century-style movable furniture

      The material mix includes walnut veneer, reeded glass, olive-coloured door fronts and antique brass detailing, as well as concrete and reclaimed iroko wood worktops.
      “I’m averse to keeping things all in one colour,” the designer said. “It’s a missed opportunity to bring texture, colour and character to a space.”
      The children’s bedroom is located on the first floorThe kitchen island was designed to account for the owners’ love of entertaining, with a section of the worktop raised to bar height to draw guests away from the cooking area.
      “The island is even more asymmetric, with different levels, drawers, shelves and openings that served to show how the geometry of a design can sometimes be off-kilter and still look neatly intentioned, as long as it sits correctly within the scale of the space,” Kelly said.
      A small study now occupies the loft alongside a primary bedrooms suiteThe curved bar provides a visual link to the rounded steps that lead down into the kitchen area, as well as to other curved elements throughout the house.
      “I like to include some curves in my projects through room openings, joinery and countertops,” Kelly said. “They help to soften spaces and improve flow from one area to the next.”
      The main bathroom is held in pale blue and green tonesAdjoining the kitchen is a hybrid library and snug, which is partially enclosed with oak shelving finished in glass and raffia, that double up as room dividers and nod to the Eames House in California.
      “We didn’t want this to be a dead space,” Kelly said. “It’s a quiet spot where you can curl up with a book or listen to music. And when the couple is entertaining, this is a soft space where you come to catch up with someone.”
      Four bedrooms are spread across the home’s upper levels, including a shared children’s bedroom with bunk beds on the first floor and two added bedrooms in the converted loft.
      A baby pink sink provides a pop of colourSince founding The Mint List in 2011, Kelly has completed a number of interior projects in London.
      Among them are the headquarters of music management company Everybody’s in Highbury, which she kitted out with mid-century-style movable furniture.
      The photography is by Dave Watts.

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      Ember Locke hotel channels Kensington’s decadent heyday

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      Warm saturated colours and maximalist touches are combined inside Locke Hotels’ latest outpost in west London, designed by local studios Atelier Ochre and House of Dré.

      Occupying an imposing Victorian mansion block in Kensington, the Ember Locke hotel was designed as a homage to some of the area’s historic architecture.
      Atelier Ochre and House of Dré have designed the Ember Locke hotelAmong the references brought in by the designers were the art deco Kensington Roof Gardens and the now-defunct Biba department store, which rose to popularity in the Swinging Sixties.
      “We wanted to create interiors that are an extension and interpretation of the neighbourhood, a space that reflects the cultural heritage of Kensington but also somewhere that shows the area’s evolution over time,” Atelier Ochre founder Pauline Dellemotte told Dezeen.
      “We wanted to delve into the world of bold patterns, rich colours, eclectic furniture and art deco details, to tap into the sense of opulence that once dominated the Kensington scene.”

      The hotel accommodates 121 serviced apartmentsInstead of traditional guest rooms, Ember Locke accommodates 121 serviced apartments over eight floors, alongside a bakery, restaurant and conservatory cocktail bar, a stage for live performances, a co-working space, a gym and a garden.
      Its interiors were designed to offer a contrast to the hotel’s location on bustling Cromwell Road – home to three of London’s most important museums including the V&A and the Natural History Museum.
      Velvet banquettes in the rooms are trimmed with ultra-long fringingThe building’s original arch-topped windows are mirrored in the arches and curves found in each room, from tubular-backed banquettes and chairs to the sculptural meandering clothes rail of the deconstructed wardrobe.
      “The curved edges of the banquette, the rotating mirror and the wardrobe rail are attempts to combine the unlikely trio of playfulness, comfort and practicality,” said House of Dré founder Andreas Christodoulou.
      “We’ve introduced some bold furniture and sculptural objects to spark a sense of curiosity and playfulness, and to allow guests to interact and reflect themselves within the space,” Dellemotte added.
      Each apartment also has a small kitchenetteThe velvet banquettes are trimmed with ultra-long fringing, echoed by the fringed pendant lights that hang low above the circular table in each room to zone the seating area.
      Brass detailing across coat hooks, wall lights and clothes rails adds to the sense of opulent modernity.

      Fettle designs Schwan Locke Hotel in homage to early German modernism

      An intense colour palette, which layers red, orange and mustard tones, is offset by the deep green of the apartment kitchenettes, highlighting the more practical nature of this area.
      “With the fringing and warm earthy colours, the rooms flirt with maximalism but still possess the calm and contemporary sophistication that one would expect from a Locke hotel,” said Christodoulou.
      The bed is separated from the kitchen via a cotton curtainHeavy recycled-cotton curtains in a claret colour, custom-created by London textile company Yarn Collective, track around the walls and create a flexible room divider, separating the bed and kitchen areas when needed.
      Many of the communal spaces feature art by local and up-and-coming artists alongside specially created works by House of Dré.
      Striped shower curtains jazz up the bathroomsThe project was a close creative collaboration between Dellemotte and Christodoulou.
      “We are old friends who met at a previous practice,” said Dellemotte. “Our friendship grew to include exciting collaborations across hospitality projects, where we combined our passions for design and art.”
      “At Ember Locke, we’ve been given the opportunity to blend the interior aesthetics and art curation of the spaces with the overall branding of the hotel in a holistic way.”
      Surfaces are finished in a salmony peach colourLocke Hotels already has a number of other outposts in London. Among them is one in Bermondsey – with interiors designed by Holloway Li to echo sunny California deserts – and one near St Paul’s Cathedral that is housed in a converted 1970s office block.
      The photography is by Kensington Leverne

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