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GETAWAY HOTEL UNIQUE

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INSPIRATIONAL DESIGN IS THE ULTIMATE LUXURY

blame it on brazil

Jet-hopping to Sao Paulo for a business meeting? Stay at Hotel Unique, a new landmark in the happening Brazilian city

April June 2009 | www.lifestyleliving.in

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BENEATH THE SKYE Skye, the restaurant at the penthouse level of the Hotel Unique, boasts a unique design, a relaxing ambience and first-class cooking. The decor is João Armentano’s handiwork, while the menu has been designed by French chef Emmanuel Bassoleil. A range of gastronomic choices are offered in a single, cosmopolitan environment.

Besides Bassoleil’s delicacies, sushi and pizzas are also on offer. “Adhering to the Unique concept, we have prepared a menu with various influences, so that it is cosmopolitan like the city of São Paulo itself,” explains the chef.

RADHIKA RAVI RAJAN HOTEL UNIQUE is true to its name: the luxury boutique hotel promises to become a worldwide reference in design and comfort and reflects the cosmopolitan nature of the Latin American country’s largest city.

It’s an urban work of art, an architectural landmark that showcases a global design.

Bold design, objects of exquisite detail, elegant and well-balanced colours–these are the features of this unique hotel. The eyecatching cooper façade that resembles a gigantic piece of cheese served on a plate; a round window cut into the wall that’s reminiscent of a ship’s porthole and gives a glimpse of Sao Paulo’s skyline; the flat-screen TV mounted on a wall that slopes towards you; a narrow lounge that looks like a squash court; doors with keyholes punched into the centre; a bar that touches the ceiling, and writing chairs made of hollow wooden trunks–everything spells unique.

The roof-top pool is also extraordinary.

You swim in a long, red mosaic pool, surrounded by breathtaking views of Sao Paulo. There is also a good indoor pool with underwater music in the basement.

When work began on the construction of the hotel, it seemed like a project that had no parallels–it was like a township plan as well as a work of art and had to become a world reference in hotels. No wonder that the best professionals in their fields–true Brazilian creative artists–were invited to accomplish this task. While the architectural design is of “Master” Ruy Ohtake;

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the interior decor is by João Armentano; the landscaping has been created by Gilberto Elkis; and the construction has been practically “sculpted” by Método Engenharia. The cuisine is the handiwork of Emmanuel Bassoleil. Behind this “unique” property is Brazilian entrepreneur Jonas Siaulys.

Ohtake defines the property’s design as being “inimitable in its architectural concept and its town-planning position. The design is a reflection of São Paulo, the metropolis, and São Paulo, the contemporary, with its content of Brazilian architecture, and is, undoubtedly, an important reference point.”

As in other design projects undertaken by him, Ohtake created this hotel as a work of town planning art. The Unique stands out by its shape–a huge inverted arc, 100-metrelong by 25-metre tall–and the 1.80-metrediameter circular windows which contribute to the distinctiveness of the project. The two, 25-metre-tall access spaces give the clear

impression of a piece of town planning. Only in large cosmopolitan cities would this entrance way be possible, claims Ohtake.

The six guest-room floors boast a very remarkable design–while the corridors are a succession of curves, whose tangents are blessed with natural light; the curved shape of the architecture imparts a feeling of infinite depth.

Ohtake describes the splendid view from the terrace thus: “I have no doubt that it is the most charming view of São Paulo.”

The hotel has six floors and 95 guestrooms, ranging from 36 to 312 square metres, each room offering a fine view of Ibirapuera Park or the tree-lined Jardins neighbourhood.

The roomy, 1,200-person Events Space is located in the basement. Covering a 100metre-long-by-50-metre-wide (5,000 square metres) area with a 6-metre-high ceiling, the Space is flexible enough to form different sections, each having all the required support services.

INSPIRATIONAL DESIGN IS THE ULTIMATE LUXURY

Be it the bar that touches the ceiling or writing chairs which are made of hollow wooden trunks– everything spells unique design

April 2009 | www.lifestyleliving.in June

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