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      Sky-blue cafe in Buffalo features “Alice in Wonderland” staircase

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      Canadian design duo Julia Jamrozik and Coryn Kempster have created a playful all-blue cafe in a century-old house in Buffalo, New York, with an optical illusion staircase.Named Tipico Coffee, the cafe’s identity was formed with the intention of designing a space that encourages social interactions and supports local craftsmanship.

      The cafe’s main bar is grafted from reclaimed furniture
      Reclaimed furniture and lighting made from construction-site string lights feature alongside an oversized staircase to nowhere which forms amphitheatre-style seating.
      The cafe’s main bar is made from ten reclaimed wooden tables sourced from classified advertisements website Craigslist.

      The main bar encourages social interactions

      The tables are grafted together and painted in sky-blue, forming a unified bar which runs along one wall of the cafe.
      “The process of designing the cafe really started with the idea of the social infrastructure of the grafted bar,” Jamrozik and Kempster told Dezeen.

      Drinks on ice are displayed between the bar’s table-tops
      The open bar has clusters of swivelling stools arranged around blue table-tops that jut out of the bar’s customer side, allowing easy socialising between customers and staff.
      “The different shapes of the tables come together to create opportunities for conversations,” continued the designers.
      “This is augmented with the use of swivelling bar stools that allow patrons the ability to turn their bodies to orient themselves to a new connection.”

      Swivelling stools encourage random encounters between customers and staff

      BLUE Architecture Studio adds U-shaped glass box to Shanghai coffee shop

      Groups of circular olive-green garden tables and chairs, as well as built-in blue benches, make up two intimate seating areas behind each side of the bar, which are separated by a wall.
      The tables and chairs used are purposefully outdoor furniture. This means that the seating can be moved onto an exterior patio in the summer months.

      Tipico’s atmosphere is a mix of indoors and outdoors
      Various scattered potted plants blend green and blue furniture together and continue the theme of bringing the outdoors inside.
      Jamrozik and Kempster explained their intentions for using sky-blue as the cafe’s dominant colour.

      Ménard Dworkind creates retro coffee bar in downtown Montreal

      “We wanted to use a vibrant colour to visually tie together the bar and benches to create continuity in the space and give visual emphasis to the bar as the main design gesture.”
      “We chose blue to both complement the olive green furniture and plants, but also to create moments of contrast with the bespoke yellow lights,” they continued.

      Potted plants are scattered around the space
      The bespoke lights designed for the cafe are composed of construction-site string lights, wound around sections of aluminium stock tubes. They hang above the bar and the seating areas.
      “We wanted to transform the string lights, while still making it clear what the source product was,” explained the designers.

      Lighting made from construction-site string lights
      Metal pegboard is another off-the-shelf material used in the space, making up a menu board behind the bar, a merchandise display board and a community message board.
      The bottom of the main bar and built-in-benches was also lined with wooden pegboard in order to “give them both a visual texture, taking advantage of the acoustic properties of the perforations,” said Jamrozik and Kempster

      A merchandise display board made from metal pegboard
      A sense of the building’s historic charm remains in the existing fireplace that is preserved, which is painted in a strip of the same sky-blue paint as the main bar.
      An over-scaled stairwell acts as an additional, cosy seating area fit for a couple of customers at a time.

      The building’s original fireplace and its playful stairwell
      Sealed off by a mirror and leading to nowhere, the stairwell is intended as an “Alice in Wonderland moment,” enhancing the cafe’s playfulness.
      “The stairway’s oversized steps effectively shrink the visitor and act as seats while the mirrored ceiling gives the impression that the space continues up,” explained Jamrozik and Kempster.
      “We imagine people will be drawn to the curious space and hope that they enjoy the tongue-in-cheek reference that plays on the domestic history of the original building,” continued the designers.

      Sealed off by a mirror, the stairwell is an optical illusion
      Jamrozik and Kempster note the importance of playful design in their work, which they believe connects people in public spaces.
      “We use the language of play to create social infrastructures: physical prompts which encourage contact between strangers.”
      “We believe that questioning the way people use and occupy space and their relationship to one another through playful encounters has enormous potential to speak across generations and cultural differences,” they continued.

      The importance of play is an influence in Jamrozik and Kempster’s design work
      Designers everywhere are acknowledging the importance of designing public spaces to maximise social interactions. In Montreal, Ménard Dworkind has created a cafe with a central standing bar, while Central Saint Martins graduates have created blocky outdoor furniture for a public square in Croydon, London.
      Julia Jamrozik and Coryn Kempster have collaborated on design projects since 2003. Their varied work spans temporary installations and permanent interior and architectural commissions.
      Photography is by Sara Schmidle.
      Project credits: 
      Architecture team: Abstract Architecture PC

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      The Brooklyn Home Company designs Passivhaus in Brooklyn

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      American studio The Brooklyn Home Company has designed a Brooklyn townhouse using Passivhaus principles in New York’s Carroll Gardens neighbourhood.The Sackett Street townhouse comprises four storeys as well as a rooftop with views of the Manhattan skyline, along with a basement and a drive-in garage.

      The four-storey townhouse has views of the Manhattan skyline
      Stairs from an outside decking area lead to a back garden, and a private terrace is accessed from the main bedroom.
      Passivhaus is a recognised European energy standard for homes that require minimal energy to heat or cool and promote high indoor air quality.

      The Sackett Street townhouse’s back garden

      For the townhouse project, The Brooklyn Home Company used an energy recovery ventilation (ERV) filtration system.
      “The air quality brings health and cognitive benefits that the developer believes will become the new standard for home building in New York City,” co-founder of The Brooklyn Home Company William Caleo told Dezeen.
      “The homes also maintain humidity levels to prevent virus spread, which is common in both dry and cold weather. In short, our opinion is it’s the best way to build new homes,” he said.

      A living room leads to the back garden
      Adopting Passivhaus principles addresses two of society’s greatest threats, argued William Caleo.
      “As society grapples with not only the current public-health crisis but the reality of climate change, builders and home designers are using Passivhaus design as an alternative technique in the wake of Covid-19.”

      The house’s walls are painted in white Farrow and Ball paint
      William Caleo and his sister Lyndsay Caleo Karol worked closely with his sister’s husband, Fitzhugh Karol, the studio’s in-house artist, to design the interiors.
      Madera white oak hardwood floors and walls painted with white Farrow and Ball paint were chosen to create a “bright and airy” home.

      A hand-crafted bed by Fitzhugh Karol in the main bedroom
      Hand-crafted pieces of furniture designed by Fitzhugh Karol include the wooden four-poster bed in the main bedroom.

      VonDalwig Architecture brightens Brooklyn townhouse House 22

      Other one-of-a-kind pieces include a bespoke dining table and a dresser, and the elegant twin beds in the children’s room were also made bespoke for the property.

      The twin beds in the children’s bedroom were made especially for the house
      The townhouse’s open-plan kitchen is a mixture of exposed beams and custom built-in wood, also designed by Fitzhugh Karol. A reclaimed ceiling by The Brooklyn Home Company hangs overhead.
      These rustic features are offset with sleek Pietra Cardosa countertops and a range cooker by La Cornue. Hardware fixtures by Waterworks and Restoration Hardware tie the space together.

      The property’s kitchen is a mix of rustic and polished features
      Selected artwork is also integral to the townhouse’s interior atmosphere. A notable piece is Tyler Hays of BDDW’s painting of a woman, made of puzzle pieces, which hangs in the dining room.
      Artistworks by Jen Wink Hays, Paule Morrot and Caleb Marcus Cain also decorate townhouse’s light and open rooms.

      Artist Tyler Hays’ puzzle painting adds depth to the dining room’s white walls
      The Brooklyn Home Company has recently launched 25 new homes also built according to Passivhaus principles across two Brooklyn developments in South Slope and Greenwood Heights.

      More Passivhaus projects outside of Europe include the upcoming 1075 Nelson Street skyscraper in Vancouver, designed by UK studio WKK Architects. When completed, it will be the world’s tallest Passivhaus building to date.
      Photography is by Matthew Williams and Travis Mark.

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      Homework creates curves inside GoodBody hair salon in Oakland

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      Curved seating, shelving and mirrors feature throughout Goodbody hair salon in Oakland, California, which design studio Homework has finished with salmon-pink accents.GoodBody, which specialises in cutting, colouring and styling textured hair, is located in downtown Oakland. It takes over a building that was previously host to several dated offices.
      To transform the site into a modern salon, San Francisco-based studio Homework had to completely strip away any evidence of the previous fit-out.

      Top image: GoodBody is set inside a spacious hall. Above: curved elements are used to break-up the space

      As well as removing decorative elements, the studio tore down partition walls and knocked through a dropped ceiling to create a vast, double-height hall.
      It was initially unclear as to how the space would be organised to accommodate the salon’s various service areas.

      A semi-circular bench anchors the salon’s waiting area
      “After rounds of iterations, we developed sinuous millwork curves to promote the service functions while defining the space,” explained Ben Work, who runs Homework alongside Susan Work.
      Curved elements can be seen as soon as customers walk into GoodBody – a semi-circular bench has been placed in the salon’s entryway to delineate a waiting area.

      Arched mirrors accompany the salon’s styling stations
      The grooved, salmon-pink bench bends round to adjoin a matching desk where staff can stand and check appointments. Overhead hangs a quartet of brass pendant lamps.
      Nearby sits a salmon-pink platform that dips inwards to form an arc shape. The platform is topped with chunky tiered shelves that display various hair and beauty products that are available for purchase.

      Each mirror is illuminated by an LED strip light
      On the opposite side of the room is a sequence of styling stations. Each one has a tall arched mirror framed by an LED strip light and a comfy swivel chair upholstered in caramel-brown leather.
      These complement the salon’s buttermilk-coloured walls and the gold-velvet curtains that have been hung in front of all the doorways.

      Curved shelving displays an array of hair and beauty products
      At the rear of the salon is a huge vaulted opening which leads through to the hair-wash room.

      New York hair salon Hawthorne Studio is designed for social distancing

      This has been completed in a darker, richer palette – surfaces have been painted what the studio describes as a shade of “peacock green”, while the sinks are made from black porcelain.
      A rounded, salmon-pink cabinet visually ties-in this room with the rest of the salon.

      A vaulted opening looks through to the hair-washing area
      Other striking hair salons to open this year include Hawthorne Studio in New York, which design practice BoND had to adapt to suit health and safety regulations put in place as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
      All of the styling stations, for example, are mobile so that customers can be moved to sit six feet apart. Spaces are also divided by wooden frames instead of walls, so that staff can monitor how many people are entering the salon.
      Photography is by Aubrie Pick.
      Project credits:
      Design: HomeworkStyling: Bianca Sotelo

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      Home Studios fills 20 Bond apartment in New York with one-off decor details

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      Design firm Home Studios used a medley of bespoke furniture and vintage finds to revamp this family apartment in New York’s NoHo neighbourhood.The 20 Bond apartment measures 2000 square feet (186 square metres) and is set within a building that dates back to 1925. Since the 1980s, it hasn’t undergone any significant renovations.

      Above: custom lights hang above the dining area. Top image: the apartment’s living room
      Brooklyn-based Home Studios was asked to carry out the much-needed overhaul of the dated apartment.
      Its owners – a couple with young kids – had grown to be a fan of the studio’s aesthetic after frequenting two New York restaurants it had designed, Elsa and Goat Town.
      This is, to date, only the second residential project that the studio has worked on, but founder Oliver Haslegrave says the creative process was much like developing a restaurant.

      A copper hood contrasts the kitchen’s blue-grey cabinetry

      “Like our hospitality projects, we envisioned an updated and modern space that defies the conformity of a typical residence,” Haslegrave told Dezeen.
      “20 Bond is a direct reflection of our practice in that the end product is both expressive and finely detailed, and marries contemporary and vintage influences.”

      Copper frames the apartment’s curved internal windows
      In the open-plan kitchen, a trio of ring-shaped pendant lamps made bespoke by Home Studios dangle above a walnut dining table. The nickel and brass spotlights that illuminate the central breakfast island were also crafted by the studio.
      Opposite the island is a series of cupboards painted a blue-grey hue called Pigeon by Farrow & Ball, accompanied by a custom extractor hood that’s clad in gleaming copper.

      Home Studios designs cinematic cocktail bar in West Hollywood

      Copper goes on to border the apartment’s rounded door frames and skirting boards. The metal also frames the guest bathroom’s internal window, which bows outwards to form a curved wall.

      Curved forms continue into the guest bathroom
      Curves continue throughout the rest of the bathroom, where a mosaic of tan-coloured tiles sinuously winds around the shower, tub and a seating nook which is inbuilt with a storage box for towels.
      Haslegrave says that these features are meant to act as a small homage to the shapely form of buildings created by Finnish architect Alvar Aalto.

      Tan-coloured tiles serve as a backdrop to the shower and bathtub
      “The freeform curves found in [Aalto’s] work represent both a fluid motif and an engaging playfulness that we aim to incorporate in all Home Studios projects,” he explained.
      “We included images of Aalto’s Screen 100 and the Maison Louis Carré – the residential building in Bazoches-Sur-Guyonne, France designed by him and his wife, Elissa – in our initial project mood board.”

      The doorways and skirting in the apartment are also edged with copper
      More bespoke and vintage pieces can be found in the master bedroom, for which Home Studios has made a walnut and travertine headboard.
      A French floor lamp from the 1940s stands in the corner of the room, beside a boucle-upholstered armchair by LA brand Atelier de Troupe.

      A bespoke headboard and vintage French lamp feature in the master bedroom
      In the living room, two antique Danish chairs with woven leather seats have been contrastingly paired with a blocky side table by Sabine Marcelis, which is cast from candy-pink resin.
      An oak and brass shelving unit made by Home Studios dominates a peripheral wall.
      “The final product is a near-ideal extension of our process and values – a tailored place that offers its residents something special,” Haslegrave concluded.

      The nearby living area is dominated by a shelving unit made by the studio
      Home Studios was established by Haslegrave in 2009. Previous projects by the studio include the revamp of Bibo Ergo Sum, an eclectic bar in West Hollywood which takes visual cues from the early 20th-century Viennese architecture, French film posters and the 1967 film The Graduate.
      Photography is by Brian Ferry.
      Project credits:
      Architecture, interior design, furniture and lighting, styling: Home StudiosFabrication: Works Manufacturing, Shelton Studios, Zalla Studios, Anthony Hart, Anders RydstedtConstruction: Vertical Space

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      MW Works uses dark wood and sandy walls for interiors of Ocean Drive apartment in Miami

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      American studio MW Works has converted and refurbished a large beachside apartment on Ocean Drive in Miami, Florida, using tropical hardwood and sand-coloured plaster.The studio knocked together two units in a new high-rise building to create a home for a family of six relocating from Seattle.

      Living areas feature plaster walls and concrete floors
      Materials were chosen to make the most of the quality of light and views of the seashore.
      “The irregular surface of the plaster highlights the changing quality of light throughout the day and lends a softness to private spaces,” said MW Works.

      Dark tropical hardwood in the dining area

      The Ocean Drive apartment’s five bedrooms are placed around the perimeter and decorated in a paler palette, while the kitchen and dining areas in the middle are darker and moodier.
      “Bedroom volumes are treated in pale, sandy tones of hand-troweled plaster reflecting natural light deep into the floor plate,” said the studio
      “The heart of the unit is clad in dark tropical hardwood with careful detailing emphasising mass and craft.”

      Plaster and dark wood in the kitchen
      Wide wooden planks form the floors. Handles and light switches are set into the doors and walls to create an uncluttered atmosphere.
      In the living room and media room, pale concrete floor slabs and a plastered ceiling bounce light around from the floor to ceiling glazing. Balconies overlook a stretch of beach with Miami’s signature lifeguarding huts.

      The home is for a family of six
      Gauzy curtains and earthy-coloured rugs continue the highly textured, refined yet beachy aesthetic of the apartment on Ocean Drive.
      “Woven baskets and patterned floor coverings add a layer of softness,” said MW Works. “Amongst the neutral canvas varied shades of blue, orange and red respond to the native flora and fauna of southern Florida.”

      Bas relief texture in the master bedroom
      In the master bedroom, the headboard wall dividing the bed area from the bathroom has a detailed geometric pattern in bas relief.
      “This design opportunity grew out of the client’s extensive travel in the middle east and their interest in mathematical patterns,” said MW Works.
      “Working with the craftspeople who would install it, we developed a pattern and a fabrication procedure to create an abstracted surface to catch the morning light.”

      The Miami apartment has ocean views
      In the ceilings, an LED lighting system is programmed to track with the sun and change across the course of the day. At night, one of the bathrooms lights up with an approximation of moonlight.
      Based in Seattle, MW Works was founded in 2007 by Steve Mongillo and Eric Walter. The studio often works with natural textures, cladding a cabin in Washington with blackened cedar and using reclaimed timber for a home in Seattle.
      Project credits:
      Architecture and interiors: MW WorksGeneral contractor: DowbuiltLocal contractor: WoolemsEngineer (MEP): Shamrock EngineeringEngineer (low volt): Visual AcousticsEngineer (structural): PCS Structural SolutionsLighting: NiteoFurnishings: Studio DIAA; Matt Anthony DesignsCarved Countertops: The Vero StonePlaster (walls, master headboard): Cathy Connor Studio CWood (casework, floor, ceiling): DowbuiltMetal (casework, hardware, patinas): DowbuiltInterior landscape garden: FormanetaCustom concrete: John DietrichMetals: Argent

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      Residence for Two Collectors is an art-filled Chicago penthouse

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      An extensive art collection is complemented by industrial detailing, a walnut floor and earthy, muted colours in this Chicago penthouse flat that local studio Wheeler Kearns Architects designed for two art collectors.Working together with Sharlene Young of Symbiotic Living, Wheeler Kearns Architects created the interior of Residence for Two Collectors for a couple who wanted a home that would have space for their family, art and furniture.

      The foyer features wooden accessories and earthy colours
      Located in a Chicago high-rise, the penthouse flat measures 6,350 square feet (590 square metres) and was gutted to a shell condition ahead of Wheeler Kearns Architects’ refurbishment.
      Designed for a couple and their dog, the residence is intended to be a welcoming space for family and friends. The owners, who are actively engaged in the community, also wanted room to host philanthropic events for up to 75 people.

      In the living room, floor-to-ceiling windows overlook the Chicago skyline

      “As such it is a bit of a transformer, with a series of perforated metal partitions that open and close to adjust to the needs of the day,” Wheeler Kearns Architects principal Dan Wheeler told Dezeen.
      “Acoustics and lighting systems were carefully integrated into the shell to attend to the technical demands.”

      The guest room has sliding doors for privacy
      The apartment has a master bedroom and a kids’ room as well as a guest room, family room, living room, dining room, a sitting room and two offices.
      A kitchen and a laundry room complete the residence, which also features a terrace and has its own service entrance in addition to the main foyer.

      The dining room is located between the living room and kitchen
      As all rooms are on one floor and many are open-plan, the walnut flooring and muted wall colour are intended to keep the design consistent throughout.
      One of the owner’s father was a machinist, which informed a steel and wood material palette that runs through the apartment.

      Pieces from the owners’ art collection decorate the walls
      “This led to a use of metals, patinated plate and perforated sheet steel,” Wheeler explained. “[The owner’s] focus was down to the selection of the profile of a screw head, something that we could all love.”

      The large, custom-made bookshelf with a dedicated spiral staircase
      “She was drawn to the end-grain walnut block flooring inspired by factory flooring, but here softer, warmer, each milled squared, laid in a grid to purposely bely directionality in the residence,” he added.
      “Those two elements, steel and walnut, drove the project home.”

      Chainmail curtains let light into the living room
      To design the interior the studio worked together with Young, who is the founder of Symbiotic Living, an interior architecture and design firm.

      Vladimir Radutny overhauls industrial Michigan Loft apartment in Chicago

      The owners’ extensive art collection played a big part in her choices for the interior design with key pieces including a George Nakashima bench, Harry Bertoia sculptures and furniture by Paul Evans.

      A green custom-cast glass table adds warmth
      Even the bathrooms, of which there are two as well as an additional powder room, are filled with art. The master bathroom features a lighter colour scheme with pale blue-grey walls and a marble floor.
      Other details include a custom-made loft and bookshelf with a spiral staircase that takes up one side of the living room, which opens up into the dining room; and drapery that resembles chainmail.

      Sculptures decorate the master bathroom
      “Chainmail, a material used historically in both Eastern and Western cultures, conveys strength and endurance, yet it also bears the surprising qualities of visual softness and ability to diffuse sunlight,” she explained.
      Also in Chicago, Vladimir Radutny overhauled an industrial loft on the city’s Michigan Avenue inside a century-old structure that was built for automotive assembly and display.
      Photography is by Tom Rossiter Photography.
      Project credits:
      WKA Team:​​ Dan Wheeler, FAIA, Principal, ​​​Janette Scott, AIA, Project ArchitectConsultants ​General Contractor: JDL Development CorporationOwners Construction Advisor/Manager: Peter SeigelStructural Engineer: Halvorson and PartnersMillwork: Glazebrook WoodworkingAcoustical Consultant: Threshold AcousticsLighting Design: Mitchell Cohn LightingMEP: BES Engineering SystemsInteriors: Sharlene Young with Wheeler Kearns Architects (founder of Symbiotic Living)

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      Sara Ruffin Costello fashions quirky interiors for The Chloe hotel in New Orleans

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      Inky blue walls, alligator-print carpet and grand four-poster beds appear inside The Chloe hotel in New Orleans, which has been designed by decorator Sara Ruffin Costello.The Chloe hotel comes as the latest venture from restaurateur Robert LeBlanc and is situated amongst the picturesque streets of New Orleans’s Uptown neighbourhood.
      It occupies a family mansion that was originally designed by American architect Thomas Sully in the 1860s.

      Top image: The Chloe’s entrance lobby. Above: an alligator-print carpet runner features on the stairs

      Sara Ruffin Costello, who is a native of New Orleans, was tasked with devising the interiors of the hotel.
      “Sully’s architecture is grand Southern Victorian – exceptionally tall ceilings, incredible tile work and plaster mouldings and a Byzantine layout,” Costello told Dezeen.
      “I ran with the romance of that era and played around with the notion of New Orleans being a port city, kind of that ‘what news do you bring from the outside?’,” she added.
      “To translate that into a vibe, The Chloe is moody with dark, antique furniture, with an emphasis on Orientalism but updated and made culturally relevant through a very special art collection.”

      Plush furniture decorates the reception lounge
      Guests enter The Chloe via a lobby that features inky-blue walls and dark wood floors. The building’s original ornate staircase is left in place but updated with a quirky, deep-red carpet runner that depicts an alligator creeping down the steps.
      “Last time I went for a kayak in the Bayou, not five minutes into my paddle two giant alligators got into a splash fight right in front of my boat – alligators are a real part of life here!” added Costello.

      Inky blue walls appear throughout the hotel
      Adjacent to this is = a reception room arranged around a large fireplace. Just in front are a couple of plush, claw-footed sofas perched on a blue floral rug, while an oversized cream lamp has been suspended overhead.
      A doorway in the corner of the room looks through to a cosy blush-pink seating nook with trellis-style walls.

      A bird-print mural is the focal point of the hotel’s salon
      The hotel’s restaurant serves signature New Orleans’ dishes with a contemporary twist. Drinks can be enjoyed in the bar and salon, where one wall has been painted to feature Egret birds fluttering amongst spindly tree boughs.
      A burnt-orange leather sofa runs along the lower half of the wall, accompanied by a handful of fringed seating poufs and tiny lamps that dimly illuminate the room.

      Guests can also enjoy dinner and drinks out on the patio
      Guests can alternatively sit with cocktails on the hotel’s porch – the floor here is clad with the tiles that date back to the 1860s.

      Maison De La Luz hotel in New Orleans is “madcap and fun” says Pamela Shamshiri

      Outdoors there’s also a swimming pool shaded by palmetto trees, a herb garden and an alfresco bar.

      Bedrooms come complete with four-poster beds
      A more pared-back design approach is taken in the bedrooms, where walls have been painted eggshell-white.
      Touches of drama are added by the four-poster beds and freestanding soaking tubs that take centre stage in the bathrooms.
      “Since The Chloe is actually a house, it feels like you are getting invited over to a local’s – which is all I ever want to do when I travel,” concluded Costello.

      The en-suite bathrooms also include freestanding tubs
      The Chloe joins a number of charming spots to stay in New Orleans, where tourists continue to flock to experience its rich history, vibrant live music scene and revered Mardi Gras parade.
      Others include The Eliza Jane, which takes over seven historic warehouses, and Maison de la Luz, which is designed as if it’s the home of a well-travelled woman that’s come to acquire several worldly souvenirs.
      Photography is by Paul Costello.

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      Trahan Architects creates curving wooden balconies for Atlanta theatre

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      US firm Trahan Architects has renovated the Coca-Cola Stage at the Alliance Theater in Atlanta, Georgia, using steam-bent timber to form an undulating auditorium.Constructed in 1968, the 650-seat Alliance Theater is part of the Woodruff Arts Center campus in the state capital of Georgia.

      The 1960s theatre was gutted and refurbished
      For the renovation, Trahan Architects stripped the interiors of the lobby, theatre and backstage areas back to the original concrete walls.
      New York-based, steam-bent furniture designer Matthias Pliessnig collaborated on the design of the wooden elements, which were made by fabrication specialists CW Keller Associates.

      Steam-bent timber curves around the seating. Photo by Trahan Architecture

      Pliessnig created a 1:1 scale mock-up of the Coca-Cola Stage at the Alliance Theater and shared his expertise in steam bending wood, a process that involves heating wood to make it pliable and bending it by hand.

      Revolving auditorium is showpiece of Boulevard theatre by SODA

      “The result is a series of beautiful steam-bent millwork guardrails and balconies that merge handcraft with mass production,” said Trahan Architects.
      “The synthesis of acoustic performance, hand-driven artistry, and sophisticated laser positioning are all carefully choreographed to execute the complex steam-bent millwork without the need for wasteful CNC moulds.”

      All of the seating zones are connected in the theatre
      The seating is now 10 feet (three metres) closer to the stage than before, and the seating of the stalls abuts the orchestra pit.
      Seating stacked around and above the stalls in the balconies are defined by curving wooden elements but are not separated.
      The architects said this design decision was a symbolic one to draw on Atlanta’s history. The city was America’s most racially segregated after 1865 when slaved were freed in the US, right up until the 1960s.
      During this period, black people were barred from eating at certain restaurants or attending certain cinemas reserved for white patrons or were forced to sit in separate seating.

      Trahan Architects worked with a sculptor on the wooden design
      “The design team felt a responsibility to remove the separation between balcony and orchestra – challenging historic notions of segregation and discrimination,” said Trahan Architects.
      “All seating zones can be accessed from every entrance within the chamber.”

      Steam-bending timber created less waste than CNC cutting the wood
      Based in New Orleans and New York, Trahan Architects was founded in 1992 by Trey Trahan. Previous work by the practice includes a visitor centre for an 18th-century plantation in Louisiana.
      The Coca-Cola Stage at the Alliance Theater is shortlisted for Dezeen Awards 2020 in the civic and cultural interior category, along with a museum in Pittsburgh built in a ligtening-struck library and a museum of architecture models in China.
      Photography is by Leonid Furmansky unless otherwise stated.
      Project credits:
      Architect: Trahan ArchitectsDesign team: Trey Trahan, Leigh Breslau, Brad McWhirter, Robbie Eleazer, James Babin, Scott Melançon, Conway Pedron, Ayesha Husain, Sarah Hussaini, Wenyun Qian, Andrew FuArtist collaboration: Matthias PliessnigMillwork fabrication: CW Keller AssociatesTheatre consultants: Theatre Projects ConsultantsAcoustics: Talaske GroupStructural engineer: Uzun + CaseMEP: DLB Associates Consulting EngineersLighting designer: Fisher Marantz StoneGraphic design: ThirstLife safety: Jensen HughesProject and cost management: Cost+ Plus VerticalTransportation: Lerch Bates

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