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"We wanted to create a project that was around visual and physical comfort; as wearable and comfortable as an old tee shirt we loved with the ability to pair with luxury jeans," explains Guillermo Garita of New York City- and Costa Rica-based Datumzero Design Office (D|O), of his firm's design for the 93-room Nu Hotel in Brooklyn. "We wanted materials that were honest and straightforward." To achieve this smart, clean look, the design team used environmentally friendly cork floors, certified sustainable teak case goods, organic bedding, and subtle vanilla tones that would offer a no-frills, but powerful approach.
"We wanted the guestrooms to feel as if you might be staying at a friend's studio," points out D|O's Sandra Cardona. Indeed, the light-filled rooms make the best of New York's notorious lack of space, with some suites featuring playful bunk beds and in others, custom hammocks to unwind in. Bathrooms come with chalkboards to encourage creative expression.
The lobby, with its cast iron ring tables, leather chairs, and "library" devoted to New York-centric reading matter, makes for a very intimate but open space, especially since the conversation-inducing bar serving breakfast and evening tapas is located here. "The lobby is very gallery-like. It allowed us to integrate materials like concrete flooring, keeping the walls very light and concentrate color in moments, like a splash of yellow," adds Cardona.
Staying true to the local landscape, Garita says the hotel used a number of found objects, like the number 85 rescued from an old Brooklyn brewery constructed in 1885, now lending character to the hotel's address: 85 Smith Street. Celebrating the down-to-earth sensibility that is distinctly Brooklyn in spirit is the hotel's design mission. As Cardona says, "It doesn't just become a place to stay when you visit Manhattan."
www.datumzero.com; www.nuhotelbrooklyn.com
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Boutique Brooklyn
Jan 14, 2009The lobby, with its cast iron ring tables, leather chairs, and "library" devoted to New York-centric reading matter, makes for a very intimate but open space, especially since the conversation-inducing bar serving breakfast and evening tapas is located here. "The lobby is very gallery-like. It allowed us to integrate materials like concrete flooring, keeping the walls very light and concentrate color in moments, like a splash of yellow," adds Cardona.
www.datumzero.com; www.nuhotelbrooklyn.com
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