Father and son architect duo Luís and Tiago Rebelo de Andrade explain how they furnished Lisbon’s Art Legacy Hotel entirely with Moooi products in this video produced by Dezeen for the Dutch furniture brand.
Lisbon practice Rebelo De Andrade designed the interiors of the five star Art Legacy Hotel, located in the Baixa-Chiado district in the city’s centre.
The hotel is notable for its exclusive use of Moooi products and rooms with bold primary colour schemes.
Art Legacy Hotel is a five star hotel in Lisbon
“Hospitality is always about image and stories,” said Luís Rebelo De Andrade, founder of the studio, in the exclusive Dezeen video interview. “We wanted the guests, when they come to this hotel, to have a completely unexpected experience.”
“So, we proposed to our client that we make a hotel with only Moooi products, to give it a very strong identity.”
Moooi’s products were used throughout the hotel, including carpets, furniture, lighting, wall coverings and art pieces.
“Moooi is everywhere in the building,” said Tiago Rebelo De Andrade, who is partner and principal architect at the studio and Luís Rebelo De Andrade’s son. “When you enter the hotel, all the colours, all the textures, all the furniture from Moooi helps us to tell a different story in every floor.
Rebelo De Andrade furnished the Art Legacy Hotel entirely with Moooi products
The project is a renovation of a historical office building. Alongside overhauling the hotel’s interior, Rebelo De Andrade also redesigned its facade.
According to Tiago Rebelo De Andrade, Moooi’s blend of modernity and classical references suited the studio’s approach to designing the hotel’s interiors.
“Moooi is classic but in a way that can also be modern,” he said. “It’s a modern-classic building.”
Art Legacy Hotel is a renovation of a historic building in Lisbon’s centre
Luís Rebelo De Andrade decided to partner with Moooi on the hotel’s interiors after visiting the brand’s Museum of Extinct Animals exhibition at Milan design week in 2018.
Each room in the Art Legacy Hotel has either a blue, red, yellow or green colour scheme, with matching wall coverings, furniture and tiling in the bathrooms.
“When I first met Moooi’s products, I felt that it uses a lot of primary colours,” he said. “So I used primary colours in a very strong way in the hotel. They are colours that provoke you.”
Moooi’s lighting, furniture, wall coverings and carpets are used throughout Art Legacy Hotel
In the video interview, the duo also discussed their working relationship.
“My son, he provokes me,” said Luís Rebelo De Andrade. “We had to educate ourselves on how to work together.”
“I offer my experience, he offers his youth in projects,” he continued. “So I think it’s a good mix.”
Rebelo De Andrade used primary colour schemes in Art Legacy Hotel’s rooms
“It’s difficult because it’s a father and son relationship,” added Tiago Rebelo De Andrade. “We are always arguing, but at the end of the day, we drink a bottle of wine so that we can make peace with each other.”
Other recent projects from Moooi include the IDEO-designed Pallana suspension lamp, made up of adjustable ring lights, and the rope-like Knitty Chair designed by Nika Zupanc.
The photography is by João Guimarães.
Partnership content
This video was produced by Dezeen for Moooi as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen’s partnership content here.
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Architecture and design have many faces, and the kaleidoscopic world of psychedelia is a fascinating one. Entrancing sinuous curves, vibrant hues, and boundless imagination alongside a connection between mind, body and the natural world are the key elements in this energetic aesthetic. Born initially from revolutionary 1960s counterculture, this surreal realm of artistic expression profoundly influenced architecture and interior design during its short reign, with daring architects pushing beyond conventional boundaries to create new, unprecedented environments.
As the reemergence of this enigmatic movement in today’s design landscape unfolds, it’s exciting and informative to delve into the past to understand its enduring allure.
A journey into the psychedelic movement’s history reveals that at its origin, the trend was heavily influenced by the widespread consumption of mind-altering substances and as the 1960s counterculture redefined the boundaries of art, politics, and social norms, a renaissance in artistic expression took hold, with architecture swept up in the beguiling influence.
One early example of psychedelic architecture is in Hamburg, Germany, at the Spiegel Publishing House. In 1969, Danish designer Verner Panton, a pioneer of psychedelic design, unveiled his magnificent office space. His avant-garde vision featured undulating contours, amorphous furnishings, and a riot of colors harmonizing into a symphony of visual delight. This space encapsulated the essence of the movement, defying traditional design’s rigidity and embracing a new world of imagination.
Around the same time, the groundbreaking architectural collective Ant Farm designed the House of the Century, an exemplary psychedelic edifice. This residential project is situated in Texas and boasts a distinctive, futuristic design with a curvilinear exterior and a luminous, open-plan interior. The structure’s seamless integration with its natural surroundings demonstrated the psychedelic movement’s affinity for the organic, a feature that would become a hallmark of the style.
In London, the 1967 opening of the UFO Club, designed by Michael English and Nigel Waymouth, heralded a new era for countercultural gatherings and developed a space that would not only reflect their way of thinking but encourage others to think and experience in new ways. The club’s interior, resplendent with otherworldly patterns and shimmering lights, provided an immersive experience, transporting visitors to a realm of hallucinatory euphoria. As a haven for artists, musicians and intellectuals, the UFO Club became and remains synonymous with the 1960s counterculture and the psychedelic aesthetic.
There are many examples of psychedelic design and our list would be incomplete without mentioning the influence of Austrian artist and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser. Hundertwasserhaus is an apartment building in Vienna, was completed in 1985 and showcased his penchant for fluid forms, vibrant colors, and ecological awareness. With uneven floors, meandering corridors, and lush rooftop gardens, the Hundertwasserhaus defied conventional architectural norms, embodying the psychedelic spirit of freedom and individuality.
Conemoting Market by Yebin Design, Shenzhen, China Photograph by Xiaoyun
Ordinance of the Subconscious Treatment by Atelier Duyi Han, China Photograph by Atelier Duyi Han
Fast forward to the present, and the reemergence of psychedelic design is evident across various contemporary projects. This resurgence can be attributed to several factors, including a renewed interest in alternative spirituality, eco-conscious design, and a desire to break free from the monotony of minimalist aesthetics. While historically, psychedelia meant the use of vibrant colors and contrasting materiality, today’s refined and developed architectural style has led to architects and designers primarily adopting the movement’s core principles into their own explorations, emphasizing fluidity, form, and connectivity with nature over simply vivid color.
Hafary Gallery by Park + Associates, Singapore Photograph by Khoo Guo Jie
Some critics have suggested that the reemergence of psychedelic architecture directly correlates with the resurgence of interest in psychedelics for mental health and well-being, a field that has undoubtedly risen to the forefront of both healthcare and design as a key focus point. As research into the therapeutic potential of various substances gains momentum and research space, so does the notion that the psychedelic architecture of the past may have had unlocked an essential insight when considering and developing spaces that support our emotional and physical health.
A recognizable cultural shift towards introspection, creativity, and self-expression is widely observed in todays society and this shift dovetails with the core principles of psychedelic design, encouraging architects and designers to revisit and reinterpret the movement’s legacy. Even if today’s architects aren’t necessarily taking the psychedelics themselves, the aesthetics of 1960s have impressed themselves on cultural memory, and it seems that firms dabbling in formal experimentation on this legacy — whether it is consciously or unconsciously.
Serpentine Pavilion by BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group, London, United Kingdom Photograph by Iwan Baan
Notable examples of modern psychedelic-inspired architecture include the Bjarke Ingels Group’s (BIG) Serpentine Pavilion that stood in London in 2016 or the Blur Building by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in Switzerland. The Serpentine Pavilion, completed in 2016, featured an undulating, translucent structure that invites visitors to explore its labyrinthine pathways.
A masterful use of form and light transform the pavilion into an immersive experience, echoing the psychedelic principles of the past. Meanwhile, the Blur Building is an ethereal cloud-like structure on Lake Neuchâtel. A fine mist generated by water jets envelops the structure, creating a dreamlike atmosphere that harkens back to the mystique of psychedelic design and the importance of experience within the movement.
Without question, the 1960s counterculture’s psychedelic movement left an indelible mark on the architectural and design world, pushing the boundaries of conventional architecture. Today it becomes evident that the psychedelic spirit continues reverberating through the world of design. As architects and designers find inspiration in the past and chart new territory, the allure of psychedelic design endures. As humans continue to explore alternative forms of spirituality, eco-conscious design, and the therapeutic potential of psychedelics, the vibrant and innovative legacy of psychedelic architecture remains a powerful source of inspiration.
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American fashion brand Khaite has opened its flagship store in SoHo, New York City – a cement-trowelled and steel-lined interior with an evergreen tree planted into its shop floor.
The store was designed by Khaite‘s founder and creative director, Catherine Holstein and her husband New York-based architect, Griffin Frazen.
The Khaite flagship store is located in SoHo, New York City
It occupies a Corinthian column-fronted building in SoHo, capped with Italianate cast-iron modillion cornices, designed by German architect Henry Fernbach in 1871.
Holstein and Frazen wanted to encapsulate the cultural legacy of the SoHo location with the area’s connection to the founding of the brand.
It was designed by Khaite’s founder and her husband
“Every element of KHAITE is shaped by New York, and we set out to make this space a tribute to the cultural legacy of SoHo,” said Holstein.
“When I moved to New York twenty years ago, this block of Mercer was my entry point to the city, and SoHo is where KHAITE was born. Our first design studio was just down the street.”
The couple looked to encapsulate the legacy of its location
The entire 371 square metre ground floor of the store was dedicated to retail space while the building’s basement was reserved for back-of-house workings as well as a private meeting area.
Holstein and Frazen’s approach saw the store clad in city-characterising materials such as steel, glass, poured concrete, troweled cement and plaster, which bring an industrial and monolithic look to the space.
Cement, concrete and steel were used throughout the store
Four curving steel partition walls meander through the length of the retail space and are used to conceal and frame Khaite’s ready-to-wear collections that are displayed on curved display rails.
The four steel walls are visually separated by a channel of light from one of two skylights at the rear of the store that was exposed during its renovation.
A focal feature of the store is an evergreen Bucida Buceras tree, which was named the Shady Lady and planted into the floor beneath the rear skylight.
As light enters and flows into the space from the skylights the rough and textural quality of the cement-trowelled walls is revealed.
Skylights were uncovered during its renovation
“The design was conceived in terms of material – choosing the right materials and working with them in the right way to satisfy the programmatic requirements,” said Frazen.
“We leaned into elemental qualities like natural light, preserving the scale and openness while creating intimate spaces.”
A tree was planted into the floor of the store
“We embrace the change of materials like steel and concrete just as you would leather and cashmere, honoring them by allowing them to wear in gracefully,” said Frazen.
“Each piece has unique textures, and rather than polishing away or painting over them, we preserved imperfection.”
It has an industrial look
Three fitting rooms were designed to contrast the brutalist details of the store and were blanketed in a deep red, fitted with plush red carpeting and warm lighting.
Minimal furniture was placed throughout, such as a Sing Sing chair by Japanese designer Shiro Kuramata that sits beside a twisted, low-lying shelf used to display the brand’s accessories.
The basement contains back-of-house operations
Before opening to the public, the store was used as the setting for Khaite’s Autumn Winter 2023 show which was presented in February.
Nearby in SoHo, design agency Aruliden completed a store interior for fashion brand Jonathan Simkhai that incorporated cut-out shapes from Simkhai’s clothing into partitions and furniture.
Design firm Crosby Studios teamed up with AR technology company Zero10 to create a pop-up store also in SoHo that allows people to try on virtual clothes.
