Designed to Imbibe: Bar Basque, NYC

What do designers do when even "out-of-the-box" thinking becomes a cliché? It’s time to start thinking "out-of-this-world." Or, at least, that is how architect Philip Koether and designer Syd Mead approached the seating design at New York City’s Bar Basque, the adjacent dining outlet to Eventi hotel, Kimpton Hotels’ most recent NYC project. "For this project we knew the seating had to appeal to many terrifically diverse groups," says Koether. To describe Bar Basque’s design as futuristic seems a bit jarring. As Koether puts it, the ambiance is very "of the next moment," while still referencing the Basque region (primarily the color red and the Bilbao tree). Bold red walls and carpeting pop against jet black and off-white seating, while the bar area is outfitted with stools and blasts of chrome and white.

It was very important in the design to have the space and furniture suit both daytime and nighttime experiences. Each chair has to work constantly for different settings and physiques. Each chair, sofa and table has its own look, which is somewhat reminiscent of someone’s very first apartment, and yet they blend together cohesively in a hodgepodge-meets-sexy-chic fusion.

"It must be universal, ergonomic, comfortable; should stack if at a dining table; aesthetically support the goals of your design concept; and be expressive with a range of options to appeal to diverse personalities and their moods, simultaneously," says Koether. Sound complicated? Maybe to some. But Koether and Mead managed to achieve this harmonious blend that has been pulling in a wide range of demographics since opening.

To do so, they used a combination of old and new: "synthetics" pitted aggressively against "naturals." In other words, geometric furniture intertwined with wildly natural tree-branch tables, or pickled-oak veneered chairs with cast fiberglass tables. "Unlike the dining area—where one size must fit all—it’s best to offer choices in the bar, lounge and club areas if you can," Koether says. “Find pieces which are both commanding and demure, elegant/refined and bold/rustic, and then place them judiciously."

 

Name of Project: Bar Basque Designer/Architect: Philip Koether Architects/Syd Mead, Inc. Lighting: ILight Technologies; RSA Dining Chair and Barstool Fabrics: Ultrafabrics, LLC. Resin Flooring: Specialty Flooring Systems, Inc. Painting in Private Dining Area: Andrew Schoultz, courtesy of Morgan Lehman Gallery Carpet: Bently Prince Street Window Shades: DFB Sales, Inc. Tables and Chairs: Canoe Hospitality. Wallcovers: Koroseal; Innovations

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