Collaboration & Craft for Ace Hotel

The Ace Hotel Sydney represents the brands’ first venture into Australia and the Southern Hemisphere. Located in Surry Hills, the century-old brick factory has been transformed into an eclectic and authentic hotel with architecture by Bates Smart and interior design by Flack Studio. Intrinsic to the DNA of the Ace Hotel brand is its focus on reflecting the unique local characteristics of the city in which the hotel stands. The Sydney hotel is no exception, drawing inspiration from the Australian landscape, vernacular aesthetics and culture to inform the design.

The approach to signage was considerate of the rich interiors designed by Flack Studios and pays homage to Australian modernist architects Robin Boyd, Enrico Taglietti & Bruce Rickard. Their design legacy is characterised by bold geometries and brutal, raw materials softened through attention to craft and the context of the natural landscape. These references were translated into the design through the introduction of natural materials that are uncharacteristic of signage and atypical of mass production.

The design of the modular signage system embraces the imperfect nature of hand crafts through a combination of carved timber, ceramic blocks and a custom geometric typeface. This modularity is referential to a wave of mass production that swept through interior design throughout the 60’s and 70’s allowing the average homeowner to access typically bespoke, crafted products. Contrary to this industrial production, the ceramic and timber cubes are the product of collaborations between local artisans Jane McKenzie, Joseph’s Workshop and Gargoyles and Dragons. Working in tandem, these artisans transformed locally sourced raw materials into sculptural elements dispersed throughout the hotel. Using unconventional materials, the process involved rigorous prototyping, testing of material limits and experimentation from which the true virtue of this project was revealed.

Composed of blocks and geometric typography, the forms are deeply carved to allow legibility of the message but to also create an interplay of light and shadow, negotiating a careful balance of functionality and sculptural design intent.  Contextually, this sculptural signage sits within an interior laden with contemporary Australian art reinforcing the hotel’s unpretentious charm.