Boutique Design - March 2018 - 36

John Sofio
Built inc.

PRoJEct
PARticiPAntS
CLIENT

The h.wood Group
DESIGN FIRm/ARCHITECT/
GENERAL CONTRACTOR

Built Inc: John Sofio, founder

AUDIO/VISUAL

FYXX Entertainment
FABRICS

2 Unexpected cladding materials and space dividers up
the ante on escapism. Here,
fabric flowers and curtains
swath guests in ambiance.

Luxury Fabrics
LIGHTING

Elegant Lighting
JM Empire Design
Trans Globe
WALLCOVERINGS

Mahogany

PoPPy

West hollyWood

boutiquedesign.com march 2018

3 Birds of a feather don't
flock together here. Instead,
controversial taxidermy
specimens remain in cages,
flanking the space.

Instead, it's an abundance of fabric cut and arranged to form a vertical poppy
field saturated with color. "The challenge with the flowers was that they
required a huge volume of material that had to hang on the wall in order to
make it look as full and dynamic as possible, while still maintaining a feeling of
being organic," says Sofio, adding that it took a large number of team members
double-checking during installation to find the perfect balance for it.
Projects like this show off a new maturity in the Los Angeles scene-it's
ready for more complex ideas that invite a cerebral, as well as visual, appreciation. Concepting is evolving, but so is execution. Think of it as a delightful cocktail that affords a smooth blend of decadent textures and arresting forms.

ELIZ ABETH DANIEL S PHOTOGR APHY
(POPPY, SOFIO)

In the City of Angels' crowded dining and nightclub scene, it's hard to seduce
guests into suspending disbelief. From emo-alien darkness to street art edginess to hard-to-find-by-design speakeasies, this group of influencers has seen,
done and drank it all. Selling them on a surreal fantasy, as The h.wood Group
ceo John Terzian wanted to do with Poppy (the nightclub that took over the
former STK restaurant digs in WeHo) means design that relies on enchantment
throughout the evening, not just one-and-done shock and awe.
John Sofio, founder, Built Inc., pulls every possible surface into that elaborate
narrative. This is maximalism on a baroque scale-and it needs to shout just that
loudly to overpower the siren call of the smartphone, contends Sofio. He wants
guests to unplug, except for the occasional souvenir pic, natch. "In the library, for
example, the room surrounds and overwhelms the millennial's sense of reality
compared to their cyber world environment. They are encouraged to disconnect
and lose themselves in the surreal fantasy of the dreamscape."
Drawing guests through, not just into, the space helps create a cinematic spell
to counter the allure of the app world. Sofio uses layering of texture and pattern as
his tools of choice for maintaining that immersive environment. It starts at the
top-STK's foot-traffic circulation patterns were less than ideal, so Sofio added
new curves to the top of the interior space, offering guests visual wayfinding,
along with a private room that's topped off with an upholstered ceiling.
Moving down to the walls, Sofio contends that designers need to be more
creative than just installing a great art collection-Poppy has 600 pieces-or
dramatic wallpaper, even though the club has that, too. It's texture that really
makes an impression.
Case in point: the riot of blooms on the patio wall, inspired by Gucci
designer Alessandro Michele's florals. It's not a living wall or preserved flowers.

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Boutique Design - March 2018

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