Rough Luxe – London

Issue 22 January / February 2009

Rabih Hage’s Rough Luxe Hotel offers a unique combination of exposed wallpaper, chipped paint and sanded surfaces...

A run down B&B on a quiet side street, just yards away from King’s Cross station, with a No Vacancies sign on the door seems a strange place for London’s latest ‘luxury’ hotel. But Rabih Hage’s recently completed Rough Luxe hotel  offers its guests a very different take on ‘luxury’. 

“Beauty is subjective,” says Hage. “Perfection doesn’t mean beauty. It’s not important. What makes a place great to stay is the location, the welcome you get and how well you are looked after. The material side is irrelevant.”

Yet a great deal of care, attention and thought has gone into the materials used for Rough Luxe. Forget marbled floors and polished finishes and air-conditioned comfort. Instead partially sanded surfaces, bare floorboards, chipped paint and unfinished edges have been meticulously exposed to create what Hage describes as a fascinating blend of “urban archaeology”. These form the ‘rough’ side of the equation. The ‘luxe’ is provided by a selection of opulent contemporary wallpaper, collectable modern artworks and high-end designer furnishings.

The idea of Rough Luxe began to evolve when this 1850’s Georgian terrace was purchased by a client of Hage’s. Having been run as a small hotel by an Italian family for decades, the building needed to be updated, but its listed status meant there were limits to the amount of redevelopment which would be possible.

The concept took shape as Hage began peeling away layers of wallpaper early on in the refurbishment, revealing decorative elements spanning three centuries. Rather than ripping it off and starting again, Hage’s instinct was to keep this intriguing ‘archaeology’ of interior design.

At first glance, it may look like an amaterur decorator’s unfinished botch job but look closely, and you realise the effort that has gone into it. For every square inch of wall or floor that has been artfully exposed, another area has been updated with luxurious, contemporary fixtures and finishes.

“The texture of years of occupation is tangible in every room,” says Hage. “The rough texture of the walls now celebrates the papering, painting, priming and patching over the years.” In each room the ‘deconstructed’ walls contrast with chic contemporary wallpaper or huge murals created from photographs of interiors by Massimo Listri, creating an illusion of space and giving depth to the compact rooms.

Another space saving trick has been to create beds which convert into divans for daytime lounging are another neat space saving trick. 

There are nine rooms, several with shared bathrooms, others with en-suites. Original light fittings and door fixtures show obvious wear and tear, contrasting with the top quality beds and mattresses as well as the fine linen, original art, and bespoke furniture within the rooms.
Artworks include paintings by Susan Shup, photographic portraits of Gilbert & George and Philippe Starck by Jonathan Root and Karen Ryan’s hybrid salvaged furniture.

Other items were sourced from the recent auction at The Savoy hotel, where Hage bought up various pieces of crockery, cutlery, fittings and furniture, now relocated to this very different form of luxury hotel.
Breakfast food, provided by Ottolenghi, is served in the basement dining room where guests sit around a table made from wood salvaged from Brighton Pier, beneath another imposing Massimo Listri photo of a Renaissance dome spanning the ceiling.

In an alcove behind reception, guests can vent their frustration on Yarisal & Kublitz’s ‘Anger Release Machine’ – a vending machine containing porcelain, crystal and china objets can be smashed for the price of some loose change. In the lobby ‘fireplace’ – a 1970s teak effect cabinet – there are books about fireplace design instead of real flames. A door marked ‘Spa’ opens into a tiny bathroom occupied by a high-tech Japanese WC. Another piece of toilet humour sees the outside lavatory retained, yet enhanced with a red lacquer designer washstand that would not be out of place in any five-star bathroom.

Hage says the look of the Rough Luxe could not be imitated – it’s design is unique to the character of the building. Nevertheless the hotel is part of a growing collective of loosely affiliated businesses including a cowshed in St Moritz, and a bodega in Northern Spain. The plan is to create a branded network offering unique experiences around the world for discerning travellers in search of ‘anti-luxury’.

WORDS: Matt Turner PHOTOGRAPHY: Courtesy of Rough Luxe

ROUGH LUXE
1 Birkenhead Street, London,
WC1H 8BA, UK
Tel: +44 (0)20 7837 5338
www.roughluxe.co.uk

Rooms:   9 bedrooms
Restaurants:    Basement breakfast room
Spa:   Japanese WC
Other Facilities:   Small external courtyard connected to The Mews Gallery