/ / / THE EDGE BY MARY SCOVIAK /1/ ROOMS FOR IMPROVEMENT Thanks to the use of fearless colors and scintillating shapes, Spain’s Hotel Bohemia Suites & Spa proves any guest room can be a stylistic over-achiever. / / / Zurich-based Pia Schmid Arkitektur & Designbüro’s work on Gran Canaria’s Hotel Bohemia Suites & Spa demonstrates that designers don’t need to reinvent the wheel to say something unique about guest room design. They just have to put a new spin on it. Studio head Pia Schmid and her team used their radical renovation of a 1970s resort as the latest soap box for their contention that revolutionary room concepts can start with “everyday inspiration”—like a handful of color swatches. What guest wouldn’t remember a violet-tiled shower stall, a chartreuse chair, a burnt orange focal wall or a suite that combines all three? Their choice of a vibrant palette is a fresh way of conveying that this hotel’s 67 rooms and suites aren’t general-issue tourist accommodations. Echoing the jolt of color introduced on the exterior elevators, these strong hues suggest the personal statements found more often in a friend’s exotic home—especially when played against wish list features like the rich mahogany floors and golden olive-wood case goods. That feeling is intensified by differentiated application techniques, like the use of the same Tadelakt lime plaster that makes Moroccan riads (inns) virtually waterproof. Shape is another fundamental building block of Schmid’s take on where guest room design can improve. For some spaces in this Design Hotels member property, she positions the bed near the doors leading to the balcony and wraps it with a wooden headboard that doubles as a half-wall room divider. / 1 / Reducing the room count from 117 in the original 1970s resort to the current 67 provided sufficient space for living and sleeping zones. 6 HOSPITALITYSTYLE.COM / FALL 2012 COURTESY OF DESIGN HOTELS