The So hotel is located at the Morland Mixité Capitale site in the emblematic former Prefecture of Paris building redeveloped by Emerige. In 2017, RDAI was laureate of the consultation to create the hotel's lobby, spa, business center, circulations corridors, 140 standard rooms and 22 suites from the 7th to 14th floors, all offering exceptional views of Paris and the Seine River.
In designing the hotel interiors RDAI sought to integrate both the history of the 1955 Prefecture building designed by Albert Laprade, and the architecture carried out by David Chipperfield for the Morland Mixité Capitale urban redevelopment.
This spectacular lobby entrance honors its setting on the Paris riverside, infused with details that firmly anchor the décor in classic Parisian architecture. Every line and curve is intentional, coming together to create a world that is familiar yet novel. Bedecked with concentric rings that evoke rippling water on an otherwise calm surface, the front door recalls the decorative metalwork of certain Parisian buildings.
As you step into the lobby a very mineral aesthetic is revealed with rich ‘peacock tail’ pattern marble flooring, and one has an immediate sense of the place like a futuristic temple: daring and unlike anything you’ve seen before; a passageway of soaring tulip like columns.
Lateral walls running the length of the lobby feature, staggered panels of amber glass echoing Haussmann façades and opening to infinity the interior volume. The terrazzo bases of these walls mark the record flood level of the Seine River. The rear wall of the lobby draws the visitor in as it comes alive with swirling contour lines, imitating the topography of the former Île Louviers on which the site is located.
This dialogue with the river, playing with circle figures and waves continues throughout the project in the circulation corridors and into the guest rooms.
The hotel rooms are the embodiment of understated elegance. where the view is the star. Open the door into a deliberately somber cognac, coffee toned corridor, and a dazzling panoramic vista appears as one discovers an urban landscape framed by oversized windows.
Inspired by the vibration of the city, the shimmering colour palettes are a variation of the hues of light: blues of the river and the zinc rooves, brick evoking the Parisian buildings and yellow from the city lights at night. The colorful, bright, and warm rooms combine wood, marble, ceramic, and shimmering textile, with a touch of nomadism introduced with customed flexible equipment and accessories.
The ‘Codage’ spa, continues this strong presence of natural materiality and colour, with terracotta or forest green mosaics and lacquers and wooden detailing, complimented by soft cloud like lighting details.
Finally, the business center responds to the client’s brief for a wildy fun and playful space. The volume is entirely flexible, being able to create intimate meeting rooms or larger open rooms. The intense colour palette echoes the terracottas, blues and yellows from the lobby and guest rooms.
The entire hotel is a harmonious experience for the guest.
