Moroso Featured in Public Spaces of The Watergate Hotel

  • August 3, 2016
Moroso Featured in Public Spaces of The Watergate Hotel
The newly redesigned hotel reopened on June 14th, 2016. A sculptor of space and form, Ron Arad has delved into the most diverse realms from architecture to product design and everything in between. During the last 25 years Arad has created several of Moroso's most distinctive products, many of which will be seen at The Watergate Hotel, including the Ripple Chairs, Soft Little Heavy, Big Easy and Size Ten. But perhaps it is Misfits, a tour de force of curves and cutouts, that demonstrate most precisely Arad's incredible imagination as realized by Moroso's upholstery craftsmanship.

The Watergate Hotel, a playground for DC's power elite in the 1960s, was originally designed by Italian architect Luigi Moretti. Making waves with its groundbreaking, contemporary style, it quickly came to epitomize the exuberant lifestyle and sophistication of its time. Arad's concept was to honor the context while creating something complementary and new, enhancing Moretti's original curves with some of his own. The longstanding relationship between Arad and Moroso made it a natural fit for the two to collaborate on the hotel's public spaces including the lobby, restaurant and whisky bar. In collaboration with Moroso, Arad also created two chairs for the restaurant: The Watergate Chair, a variation of the Victoria & Albert collection, and One Skin chair and barstool–a reinterpretation on Moroso's Three Skin chair. Arad also designed the custom banquettes that Moroso produced for the hotel's dining spaces.

While Arad conceptualized the lobby, whisky bar, reception area and restaurants, Euro Capital Properties worked with Moroso USA in the design of the library. This intimate space, situated in the center of the hotel, has windows overlooking the Potomac on one side and the whisky bar on the other. Here, contemporary references to old world furnishings include Patricia Urquiola's tufted Bohemian, and textured Redondo sofas and chairs. Alfredo Haberli's embracing Take a Line for a Walk updates the classic wingback. Moroso's new Terraria terra cotta bookshelves by Archea Associati adds organic texture while dividing the transparent space of the library. To complete the space, a colorful patchwork composed of Golran area rugs, distributed by Moroso in the U.S., are spread underfoot.

Visit websites:
www.morosousa.com
www.thewatergatehotel.com