The design for Nocturnal Animals was inspired by a playlist of classic 80’s music and used theatrical scene-setting to create a dramatic and other-worldly atmosphere.
From stepping through the front doors, a double-height space is framed by full-height theatre backdrops hung from the ceiling. The bar itself uses the full height of the space, with a mezzanine gantry to access the wall of spirits. Hidden behind the bar is a ‘bartenders table’ - an exclusive booth where the guess have their own dedicated mixologist.
Stepping out of the dark theatricality of the bar and you enter a bright white tunnel - designed to provide maximum contrast and adding a real sense of drama as you head towards the basement dining room.
Along the way you will find the toilets - an ultimate colour-pop moment, applying block colours using simple square tiles.
Once down into the dining space, guests are seated on what seems to be a dancefloor, with focused lighting onto each table and an open pass to the buzz of the kitchen.
The basement toilets, at first site, seem altogether more ‘normal’ - until you realise, the Victorian style illustrative wallpaper features scene from contemporary urban life, including drug dealers, dogs peeing up lamp posts and all manner of other unsavoury behaviour!
This was a fun project to design and is quite possibly one of our most iconic projects to date.
