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THE PARK CHENNAI CHENNAI, INDIA |
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ARCHITECTURE / INTERIOR DESIGN |
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| Hirsch Bedner & Associates LA |
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In a previous life, The Park sat on the lot of one of India’s biggest film studios. So when the privately run group Park Hotels took over the site and decided to build a hotel in 2002, they made sure to artfully weave the site’s legacy into Chennai’s concept.
Los Angeles architects Hirsch Bedner & Associates can be credited with pulling off a hotel that pays homage to its glittering movie past without dissolving into Bollywood kitsch. Artworks with a lotus flower theme by leading Indian artist Hemi Bawa greets visitors into the massive lobby that also includes oversized screens upon which an ever-changing roster of films is projected. The guests are then beckoned across an atrium area, where the design team has selected a cool, pale cream limestone, aqua-coloured leather and cocoa velvets to create a soothing ambience. However, when night falls on the city of almost 8 million, the lobby turns from an oasis of calm into one of Chennai’s hottest spots where locals mingle with the international clientele.
The interior design of the hotel’s guestrooms is light and breezy. Modern furniture in muted colours is set upon beech wood floors. The understated décor is ever so slightly broken up by light ornamental extravagances, such as the coconut shell inlaid tables or parchment lamps. The film posters from the 1960s that are scattered throughout the hotel hallways are among the few direct references to the Chennai’s past, ensuring that Hirsch Bedner & Associates’ cool, contemporary design remains the star of the show. |
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