Boutique Design - May 2018 - 28

Hard rock Hotel
SHenzHen
Shenzhen, China

28

boutiquedesign.com may 2018

4

PrOJeCt PArtiCiPANts
CLIENT

Mission Hill Properties
DESIGN FIRM

CL3 Architects Ltd.:
William Lim, managing
director; Jane Arnett,
senior associate;
Simon Ho, senior interior designer, Him Ng
and Roy Lam, interior
designers
William lim
CL3 ArChiteCts Ltd.

ARCHITECT

CCDI (Branch of
Shenzhen)

GENERAL
CONTRACTOR

Shenzhen Jing Tai Feng
Construction Engineering Co. Ltd.
DESIGN CONSULTANTS

Light Planners Intl. and
Design Consultant Co.
Ltd. (lighting)
Shenzhen Snowball
Lighting Ltd. (decorative lighting)

4 Cymbal-ism: More than
1,600 individual pieces
make up this abstract
dragon. Using a lot of
right angles around
the sinuous sculpture
provides a yin-yang
contrast.

CL3 ARCHITECTS LTD. / NIRUT BENJABANPOT
(HARD ROCK AND LIM)

Don't save the drama-spend it gleefully and publicly. That's
not just the raison d'être of reality TV. It's also the mandate
for a new breed of art hotels moving their exhibits off the
walls and out of the ivory tower, using all three dimensions
to make those pieces pop, from the inside of the property,
and in this case, from the street.
That approach might not be new for Hard Rock, but it's
more influential and scalable today than even three years
ago. The challenge for designers is how to keep the end result
from being what Hong Kong-based CL3 Architects Ltd.
managing director William Lim calls "tacky."
Lim's answer in the Hard Rock Hotel Shenzhen is to make
a flashy art piece, such as an abstract dragon made of
cymbals, not just another attention-getter, but the only wow
piece in its own space.
"We use a very simple materials palette to play against
the focal elements," says Lim. "A lot of black was used to
subdue the backdrop in order to let the features stand out. In
some areas, such as the grand stair where bold red was used,
the jewel-tone red would almost cover the entire area with
minimal articulation, making the curved form of the stairs
stand out. By doing, this we managed to make this element
the highlight."
Lim says he thought of this project like a Chinese scroll,
where no matter how detailed the image is, only a small part
of it can be viewed at one time.
The issue wasn't just in avoiding excess. Unique 3D art,
whether it's a massive piece or a smaller scale one such as a
costume on display, necessitates a serious financial commitment
for the client, especially during concepting and installation.
Multiple rounds of shop drawing reviews aren't enough to
ensure proper execution, says Lim. Large-scale, offsite
mockups are crucial, both for the art and the guest rooms.
For the final installation, the CL3 team had to be onsite to
supervise. They also worked with Hard Rock Intl.'s in-house
design team and memorabilia curator Dale Hipsh to select
and place the art items from Hard Rock's own collections.
That includes an elaborate costume in a glass case, as well as
brand-typical touches such as walls of records or guitars.
Maintaining innovation beyond that one element is also
key, adds Lim.
"Our intention is to balance practicality with a unique
experience," he explains. "In the guest accommodations, we
tried to create a new room type by rotating the bed and
placing it in almost the geographic center, and laying out the
rest of the functions around it. This is how we approach all
parts of the design."
And, Lim adds, that's not just for punchy brands such as
this one. "If we were to do a more basic hotel, we would still
take a similar approach," he says.
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