'Fusion of East and West'

16th June 2010, 12:39pm

Newcastle upon Tyne based Neil Wilson Design (NWD) has recently completed a major refurbishment project in the city for the Best Western Ryokan Hotel - a new 20 bedroom hotel with its own fusion restaurant 'Luigikhans'.

The grade II listed building located on Westgate Road, formerly the Balmoral pub, had been empty for the past 20 years but has undergone a transformation following a £2.5 million refit, which took nine months from start to finish.

The team behind the project wanted to create a relaxed, spacious feeling for guests. Neil Wilson explains: "The NWD concept was to give the spaces a relaxed, lived in feel made up of an assemblage of ideas rather than a smooth concept.

"The aim was also to design a profitable space which demanded our best possible response to what was an unusual brief (to merge two very different cultures -Italian and eastern).  The client did not want the space to be intimidating or over sophisticated.

"The design is all about the fusion of east and west in a loose unpretentious way.  It was our mission at the beginning to avoid making the design look too sophisticated.  What has been created has given Ryokan a unique look of its own."

Wilson says the key features of the design work include the wallpaper wall which consists of a collage of different coloured heavy wallpapers which have been pasted horizontally in an ironic reflection of the traditional trends of Indian restaurant interiors of years gone by, and the empty decorative picture frames arranged on an exposed brick wall.

According to Neil, The NWD team spent a great deal of care and attention researching natural materials with a 'lived in' quality to provide reference to the past while maintaining a modern, retro feel.  

He says: "People love natural tactile surfaces and are far more sophisticated in their appreciation of natural materials - the space we have designed is comfortable, yet not overtly stylish."

The team's signature style may change from each project, but one thing that remains the same, says Wilson, is the way they approach each project: "We like to understand the business and try and develop a visual proposition based on how the business should run.  We want to design a contemporary space that people can enjoy and is fit for purpose."

Looking ahead, Wilson plans to expand their portfolio of work within the hospitality sector and concentrate on offering the best design solutions they can for each client.

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