The Sheraton Miramar was originally designed by Michael Graves in 1997. In typical post-modernist fashion, the hotel blends references from ancient Egyptian, Arabic, and Nubian cultures into a single resort aesthetic.
Situated on its own island within the lagoon is the Orient 1001 Restaurant, housed in a pavilion. AP redesigned the façade to work with the motifs of the Graves architecture while improving climate control. Pivot doors and panels open the pavilion to the breeze, improving comfort through the day and into the night. The interior arrangements reinforce the architectural layout, creating a layered series of rooms within rooms — intimate micro-environments within the original grid. Terrace, sea, and gardens become extensions of the restaurant space, framing views, controlling light, blending with nature.
Every piece of furniture was designed for the space and made by hand, locally — a negotiation with the Nubian intentions of the Graves architecture. Upholstery in mismatched stripes carries the informal register you find across Egypt: unselfconscious and individual. The work required dialogue with local craft, and the design was influenced accordingly.
Continuing this spirit of renovation, AP overhauled what had become a suite of meeting rooms. A new colour palette, new carpet, an overall refinishing — including the inversion of the existing chandeliers. Every colour introduced already existed somewhere else in the hotel: a connective thread between the spaces and the building. The intention was to give these rooms a vivid identity. Destination event spaces.
