Sleep, Europe’s annual hotel design and development event, has announced its conferences for this year’s event, which takes place on 21-22 November at London’s Business Design Centre.
This year’s sessions will debate the challenges and aspirations driving the industry and tap into the undercurrents shaping its’ future.
Parisian interior architect Tristan Auer will kick off the conferences on the morning of day one with “Revival of a Myth”, where he will reveal his approach to returning storied, prestigious buildings to their former glory.
The afternoon brings a second presentation, “Emotional Modernism”, during which NYC-based architect Jeffrey Beers will share his passion for evoking emotional responses through spatial design.
Day two will begin with architect Eero Koivisto, co-founder of Claesson Koivisto Rune. Illustrated by Hotel Zander K; Hotel Villa Terminus; and Hotel Bergen Børs, Koivisto will reveal how the Swedish partnership balances architecture and design to ‘manipulate space’ with abstracted and honest Scandinavian beauty.
The forward-looking topic, “New Concepts of Luxury”, will be presented that afternoon by Maria Warner
Wong and Chiu Man Wong, principals of Singapore-based WOW Architects | Warner Wong Design and
entrant into last year’s Sleep Set guestroom design competition.
In conversation with conference moderator Guy Dittrich, the duo will draw upon their experience in sustainability and wellness through projects.
With regard to the F&B sector, three tastemakers will come together for day one’s “Fast Food” session: Bob
Puccini, founder of Puccini Group, USA; designer and chef Ido Garini from Studio Appétit; and Simon
Rawlings, creative director at David Collins Studio, will be exploring new dining concepts, sourcing local
and the rise of the slow food movement.
Day two sees life in the fast lane reconsidered by visionaries on the forefront of “Slow Design”. Quentin
Danté, managing partner of Bangkok-based global hospitality design group, STUDIO Q; Motti Essakow,
natural capitalist and chief imagineer of Rythms by Design; and Ilse Crawford, founder of Studio
Ilse, will consider the benefits of creating spaces that enhance wellness through a balance of individual,
socio-cultural and environmental needs as illustrated by their inspiring portfolios.
In terms of design, at the conference “Design Beyond Space…ID” on day one, graphic design and branding experts explain how the design of a hotel extends beyond its physical space. Matt Utber, creative director of The Plant; Candice Madrid-Dahlqvist, design director of Sweden-based Millkeeper Studio; and Kate Cox from GA
Brand Design with offices in the UK, Hungary, China and Malaysia, will delve into the influence of graphics, signage, fonts and collateral in the hotel realm.
“Post Cool” will take place on day two, Jason Holley, director of Universal Design Studio; James Soane director of Project Orange; and Henrietta Thompson, editor-at-large of Wallpaper* magazine will explore how when it comes to hotels, being ‘cool’ is no longer cool. Join these creative luminaries to learn what comes next, and how a more caring attitude towards design enriches the guest experience.
There will also be a series of roundtables at this year’s show, where opinion leaders such as Eric Jafari, co-founder and creator of Locke Hotels, will join moderator Jamie Chappell, Global Business Director of Horwath HTL in the “Development and Investment” session examining the prospects for global hotel development and consideration of whether the risks in developing design-led hotels pays off for savvy investors.
This debate will be followed by the ever-popular “Development Roundtables” hosted by Daniel Englender, managing director of Benjamin West, during which top professionals from the hotel development, owner, investor and operator sectors move from table to table ready to offer their professional insight and candid advice to delegates.
The morning of Day Two, the four Sleep Set guestroom design teams interpreting the 2017 event
theme, “Loyalty: Lessons in Love”, will reveal their takes on how design can create experiences so
meaningful that loyalty becomes love.
More information about this year’s event can be found on the Sleep Event’s official website.
