W – Hong Kong

Issue 22 January / February 2009

East fuses with West at W, thanks to the ingenuity of Japan’s Glamorous Co. and Australia’s Nicholas Graham + Associates.

The battle for hotel supremacy has long raged between Central and south Kowloon. The Peninsula on Salisbury Road set the standard for luxury accommodations more than 80 years ago when it opened to travellers stepping off the train or ferry.

Then, the impeccable service and posh surroundings at Mandarin Oriental enticed pleasure-seekers over to Central. In the Nineties and then again in 2006, InterContinental and Four Seasons swung the pendulum across Victoria Harbour and back. With the opening of W Hong Kong in the burgeoning West Kowloon district, luxury has finally caught up with 21st century attitude. Boasting the talents of two design firms from opposite ends of the Pacific Rim, the hotel offers guests a breath of fresh air that is refined at the same time as it is contemporary.

Of all the Starwood brands, W is the one most out there; it is all about being funky, fun and looking fabulous. After all, the W motto is Whatever, Whenever. Design-wise, W hotels across the globe take the most risk. In Hong Kong, where even new hotels still play it safe, W is fostering a select fan club that appreciate design of the times. This hotel in particular, is littered with unique pieces of artwork and dramatic abstract sculptures thought to have cost more than a few dollars.

As the third Asian W property to open within the last five years, W Hong Kong had to distinguish itself from the starkly minimal interiors of W Seoul and the tropical chic of W Maldives. Developer Sun Hung Kai Properties, who enlisted New York-based Kohn Pederson Fox to design the neighbouring ICC tower, retained Sydney-based Nicholas Graham + Associates and Osaka-based Glamorous Co. to achieve its goal.

While both firms alternated the design of each guestroom floor, G+A was responsible for the lobby lounge Living Room, the all-day-dining Kitchen and the rooftop pool Wet. That left the entrance lobby, signature fusion restaurant Fire, ballroom, business centre, Bliss spa and Sweat gym to Glamorous.

Founder of Glamorous Yasumichi Morita has previously worked on numerous hospitality projects in Hong Kong. Recently he designed Japanese fine dining restaurant Megu in Elements, the swank shopping mall just steps from W, before working on the hotel itself.

“The opportunity came all of a sudden via an email in the spring of 2005,” recalls Morita. Stepping up to the plate, he set out to reinterpret nature for an urban hotel using abstracted forms in opulent new ways. “We aimed to create a story very original to the hotel. W is truly a creative brand that seriously sells lifestyle experiences. Our mission was to create a new benchmark for international hotels as well as for the Asian market.”

One of the most stunning aspects of W is its triple height lobby with a series of suspended tree branches above the glass entrance, Morita’s stylised version of an abstracted forest. LED lights in the twigs form the distinctive W logo, turning the transparent vestibule into a beacon at night when viewed from outside.

The nature concept continues within on a feature wall of raked soil in subtle colour gradations to represent the five essential Chinese elements. Meanwhile, giant columns clad to mimic tree trunks are a clever way to overcome the challenge of working around their structural necessity.

“The most difficult challenge we confronted were the huge structural columns found at the podium levels,” explains Morita. “We envisioned them to be part of the hotel’s charm instead of merely structural members. We turned them into strong tree trunks that give off energy to the entire space as well as connect the podium floors, turning a disadvantage into an advantage.”

Guestrooms were treated with the same whimsy as their monikers; these Wonderful, Spectacular, Cool and Fabulous rooms joined the Fantastic, Marvellous, Wow and Extreme Wow suite counterparts. Standard rooms start at an impressive 40m2 — the height of luxury in space-challenged Hong Kong.

The main difference between the G+A and Glamorous room designs are the use of colours and motifs. While G+A has incorporated tree rings as a graphic pattern on walls and tend towards earthy tones, Glamorous turns the space into a garden of earthly delights with a nod at Japanese anime, and lean towards startling splashes of yellows and blues.

Along with smart touches such as iPod docking stations and photos of repeat guests in picture frames to make them feel right at home, space saving concepts include open corners in the bathrooms. Sliding doors allow for privacy as required, while freestanding vanity islands featuring a table lamp make the counter more flexible for a variety of uses. A butterfly motif on the wall behind the bed continues into the bathroom as backlit glass surrounding the mirror.

In the hotel’s signature fusion restaurant Fire, Glamorous engaged the talents of three Japanese artists to capture the element’s essence. “Fire photos by Isshin Susa successfully captured lively fire dances into the scene,” says Morita. “Masataka Kurashina spreads his original fire flower onto his ceiling canvas. Takahiro Kondo extracted mist out of the fire. They are artists who share our vision for designing experiences.

Although they came after we consolidated the concept, their work exceeded our expectations and added further power to our design.” A combination of private, semi-private and open dining, red is used liberally by Glamorous on the floor, upholstery and ceiling mirror for a truly decadent feel.

Morita explains the way he uses colour to reinforce the different elements throughout the space: “Red and orange are the key accent colours on the first floor, as this has the theme of fire. Metallic bronze colour for the banquet floor expresses rain. And fresh green for the business centre floor reinforces the abstract garden. In regards to textural qualities, we used more hard materials on the podium floors. In contrast, we clad the walls using warm materials such as sand, earth or timber.”

G+A’s design for the Living Room again emphasises nature. Brightly coloured butterfly print cushions are scattered over soft upholstered seating, made all the more homely by chess sets and a collection of hardbacked books. Overhead is a highly reflective feature wall adorned with abstract butterflies. 

Kitchen, the all-day-dining restaurant, is a nod to Hong Kong’s reputation as being a city where east meets west. Along with its local delicacies, there is a wide range of international options for guests. The comfort food concept is reflected in the completely open kitchen with adjacent chef’s table and a medley of pendant lamps suspended above.

Finely manicured wheatgrass atop every table and mountains of green apples are two of the few design elements that Starwood insist on in their brand standards. Otherwise, this hotel is far from standardised.

WORDS: Rebecca Lo & Catherine Martin /

PHOTOGRAPHY: Courtesy of W Hong Kong

W HONG KONG
1 Austin Road West, Kowloon Station,
Kowloon, Hong Kong
Tel: +852 3717 2222
www.whotels.com/hongkong

Rooms:   393 guestrooms and suites
Food:    Fire signature restaurant, Kitchen all-day-dining
Drink:    Living Room lobby lounge
Leisure: Bliss Spa, Sweat Fitness Centre, Wet rooftop swimming pool
Facilities: Wired Business Centre