Hype&Hyper

This summer, the interior design duo Holloway Li will present WunderLocke, a hotel in Munich based on the theory and aesthetics of Wassily Kandinsky’s “Innerer Klang”. Locke’s newest apartment hotel, comprising 360 studios, is housed in a monumental former office building.

Kandinsky, who was based in Munich for a significant period in the early 20th century., explored how we can develop a closer relationship with nature through abstraction—he believed that by connecting with the ‘Innerer Klang’ (inner sound) of things, the artist could reveal the natural essence of objects and materials.

With this in mind, the designers stripped away unnecessary ornamentation to reveal the raw concrete skeleton of the existing building. The original terrazzo staircase, dating from the 1960s, was restored and brought up to the modern code with new stainless steel fixings and handrails. Dense, free-flowing vegetation has been planted between the concrete columns, and natural materials have been used for the new cladding and furniture: wood, terrazzo and raffia balance the concrete mass lending the space a softness, as do the spectacular natural-textured carpets. The color scheme, defined by earth tones and botanical greens, is punctuated with colorful elements of furniture and upholstery.