Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 111

>
sean connolly at
dubai opera house

Australian artist Jacqui Fink's hanging
rope installation in Merino wool
resembles a giant sea creature

A fluted glass and brass structure sits
above the bar, which is accentuated
with soft green furnishings

Pink and gray hues, as well as a
ceramic-tiled ceiling above the
raw bar, take cues from an oyster

Photos courtesy of ALEXANDER & CO.

When the Dubai Opera House needed an F&B
spot to populate its newly added top floor, the
owners turned to chef Sean Connolly, known
for his popular restaurants in Australia, who in
turn tapped frequent collaborator Jeremy Bull,
principal of Sydney firm Alexander & Co., to
take on the unusually bow-shaped venue that
seats up to 350 guests.
Bull conceived the restaurant so "that it
didn't have only one genre," he says. "It was
a bit more out of the box, and it didn't have
a clear precedent." He chose 20th-century
furniture like bentwood and green couches
to evoke a 1960s salon, opting for a restrained
elegance in glitzy Dubai. High-backed blush
pink leather banquettes carve out intimate
alcoves, while other nuances, including a fluted
glass and brass structure above the main bar
suggests a brasserie. Likewise, the spider-like
white lights suspended above the banquettes
"add to the strangeness and provocative quality
of the venue," he says.
Bull wanted everything to speak to the
sea, so he chose pink and gray tones to mimic
the delicate interiors of an oyster-"all quite
soft and floating," he says-that fuse with
ocean blue carpeting and the matte and
glossy gray ceramic-tiled ceiling that nods to
the oyster's textured exterior and its fan-like
shape. Meanwhile, two prominent Australian
artists, Jacqui Fink and Tracey Deep, were
commissioned to create their own take on
marine life. Fink, a knitter in mega scale,
produced a hanging rope-like sculpture
in Merino wool to look like a sea creature,
while Deep's three pieces are modeled after
jellyfish and made with chrome and safety
pins. For some "diversity in the experience,"
the bathroom reception area is dressed in
black and gold. "Not everything is oceanic and
dreamy, there is a dark and more nocturnal"
edge to the ocean, as well, Bull explains.
However, the back courtyard proved to
be a challenge, as it didn't have the capacity
to withstand heavy loads, which meant trees
and walls couldn't be added. Instead, Bull used
broken ceramic Spanish tile in muted tones to
create a curved barrier. "To convince the locals
[the restaurant] was going to look luxurious
was a big win," Bull admits. "It's a beautiful,
abstract sort of space."

Broken ceramic tiles in understated tones create a curving wall
in the back courtyard, which offers views of the Burj Khalifa

hospitalitydesign.com February 2018

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Hospitality Design - February 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Hospitality Design - February 2018

Hospitality Design - February 2018
Contents
Online TOC
From the Editor
Behind the Design
CitySCENE: Dallas
Perspectives
Sketchbook
Inspiration: Color of Time
Inspiration: Bosjes
Interview: Olga Polizzi
5 Questions for Florian Kollenz
Products
Designer Profile: Serena Confalonieri
Lighting
Made in America
Wallcoverings
Casegoods
Siteseeing
Downtown Los Angeles
Shanghai
Toronto
Vietnam
Nashville
Copenhagen
Dubai
Bangkok
Washington, DC
Ad Index
Back Space: Boon Sim
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Intro
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Hospitality Design - February 2018
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Cover2
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 1
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 2
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 3
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 4
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 5
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 6
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Contents
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 8
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 9
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 10
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Online TOC
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 12
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 13
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 14
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 15
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - From the Editor
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 17
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 18
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 19
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Behind the Design
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 21
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 22
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 23
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 24
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 25
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - CitySCENE: Dallas
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 27
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 28
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 29
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 30
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Perspectives
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 32
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Sketchbook
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 34
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 35
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 36
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 37
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 38
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 39
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 40
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 41
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 42
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Inspiration: Color of Time
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Inspiration: Bosjes
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 45
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 46
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Interview: Olga Polizzi
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 48
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 49
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 50
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 51
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 5 Questions for Florian Kollenz
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 53
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 54
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Products
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 56
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 57
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 58
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Designer Profile: Serena Confalonieri
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 60
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Lighting
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 62
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 63
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 64
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Made in America
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 66
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 67
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 68
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Wallcoverings
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 70
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 71
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 72
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 73
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 74
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Casegoods
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 76
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 77
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 78
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 79
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 80
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Siteseeing
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Downtown Los Angeles
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 83
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 84
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 85
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 86
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 87
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Shanghai
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 89
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 90
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 91
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 92
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 93
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Toronto
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 95
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 96
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 97
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 98
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Vietnam
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Nashville
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 101
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 102
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 103
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Copenhagen
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 105
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 106
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 107
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Dubai
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 109
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 110
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 111
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Bangkok
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 113
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Washington, DC
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 115
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 116
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 117
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Ad Index
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - 119
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Back Space: Boon Sim
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Cover3
Hospitality Design - February 2018 - Cover4
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