Contract - April 2013 - (Page 81)

Interactive Playtime) and weekend SIN (Socially Interactive Nighttime) events. Previously, a stair up to the second floor reception area split the lobby into two with separate bar and restaurant spaces. Skylab moved the stair to one end of the lobby and placed the fireplace at the center to create one large space with different vignettes for people to gather informally. A library with a long table and oversized reading lamp is in one corner. Instead of books, custom wallpaper displays the spines of oversized record albums as a nod to the area’s music culture. Subtle delineation woven in To define different seating areas without interrupting the open flow of the space, the designers implemented fine cable screens. Threads appear to rise from the banquette upholstery fabric to create loom-like partitions that reach to the ceiling. The threads then gather together and run across the ceiling before turning down to support glass chandliers that resemble the frayed ends of a rope. The clusters of 42-inch-long rose-colored glass tubes were hand blown by Kovel’s sister, Andi Kovel of Esque Design, Portland. Skylab hung fine cable drapes along the length of the street façade to filter light into the bar and restaurant. The cable drapes peal off to define semi-enclosed cylinders of space over each table near the bar. “There’s just under three miles of rope in the Living Room,” says general manager Tom Limberg. He credits the redesigned lobby for increased room sales and notes that restaurant and beverage sales are up as locals see the W as a destination. The weaving theme continues in the chevron pattern of the custom concrete tiles that cover the walls enclosing the bar. “It’s an abstraction of the Pendleton blankets inspired by Native American trading history,” says Grubb. A highly polished metal frame surrounds the opening at the bar and reflects the up-lights set into the acrylic countertop. Another custom tile is on the floor, embossed with growth rings of a crosscut tree in homage to the timber industry. Just beyond the bar is a dining area with seating for 100 at tables positioned to promote community dining. The room’s focal point is a lenticular mural with alternating images of a jellyfish and an F-18 bomber: a mash up of local maritime and aviation references. By day it is a sophisticated place for a work lunch. But at night, a stage is pulled out as a dance floor, the lights are turned down, and it is transformed into a hotspot for sipping and sinning. c contract

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Contract - April 2013

Contract - April 2013
Contents
Editorial
Industry News
Columnist: How Young Practitioners Can Present Themselves As Leaders
Product Focus: Rugs the Right Way
Product Focus: Sitting Pretty
Product Focus: Basking in the Sun
Product Briefs: Hospitality
Das Stue
Carousel Bar
Andaz Amsterdam
W Seattle
Jelsomino
Designers Select: Hospitality
Sources
Ad Index
Installation

Contract - April 2013