Hotel Catseye
HAMILTON ISLAND, AUSTRALIA
@studioainslie
@linkedin.com/in/ainslietegart
studioainslie@gmail.com
Motivated by the desire to create mood enhancing spaces, Ainslie’s design style is playful and laid-back with a focus on sustainable and Australian made products. Ainslie specialises in commercial design, specifically themed interiors that work with a multitude of colours, patterns and textures.
During her studies, Ainslie developed the skills required to successfully undergo spatial planning, material selection, 3D visualisation, and ultimately the ability to move from initial concept to project execution. She successfully enhances the user experience through innovative solutions that deeply consider sustainability and environmental impact.
Eager to contribute her knowledge and creative viewpoints to projects, Ainslie aims to redefine the impact of interior design on everyday life through innovative ideas, focusing on the preservation and regeneration of the environment.
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Client: The Oatley Family
Owners of Hamilton Island, The Oatley Family have halted the sale of the island, ending plans to sell the one billion dollar tourism asset. The Oatley’s have decided instead to rebrand and renovate the pre-existing hotels owned on island. They require a full redesign of the Reef View Hotel, located directly opposite Catseye Beach.
The clients have requested the hotel be rebranded into an art hotel, promoting Indigenous art in an attempt to communicate the Australian experience and ultimately attract new demographics to the island. They require the redesign of the Presidential Suite, Lobby Area and Reef Lounge, to be rebranded into a wine bar promoting and serving Robert Oatley Wines.
Hotel Redesign
Through the redesign and rebranding of Hamilton Island’s former Reef View Hotel, Hotel Catseye provides a contemporary refresh, focusing on art and leisure. In collaboration with Indigenous Australian artists, the hotel refresh explores the significance of the reef and its connection to Indigenous culture, prompting guests to appreciate the legacy of the traditional owners. Designed in a boutique hotel manner, the project draws inspiration from the nearby Great Barrier Reef’s colours, textures and forms, blending natural beauty with luxury, art and innovation. Sustainability, natural materiality are locally made products are at the forefront of the design, providing guests with the ultimate coastal Australian experience. The hotel’s refresh welcomes a wider range of ages and demographics, introducing new nightlife in the connected Reef Lounge. Serving owners of the island’s ‘Oatley’ organic wine range, the redesign is a vibey late night spot with a focus on restoring night life on the island post pandemic. Hotel Catseye promotes the preservation of the Great Barrier Reef, showcasing the beauty and rich cultural heritage of Australia in a playful and contemporary redesign that showcases the unique nature of First Nations art.
Hamilton Island Australia SITE
ADDRESS
AREA
ANALYSIS
12 Resort Dr, Hamilton Island, 4803, QLD
175sqm
Traditional owners of the land, the Ngaro people lived off the land and sea, sheltering in caves and bark huts and crossing the Whitsunday islands by raft. The islands and surrounding waters provided them with plenty of food and shelter opportunities, with evidence to suggest the Ngaro people settled here 8,000 years ago. This theory formed based on the remnants of discarded shells, bones, charcoal and rocks, revealing a diet of seafood, including small whales, turtles and shellfish, as well as fauna such as marsupials, snakes, lizards and birds.
European settlers arrived in the mid 1800s, settling the coastal region of the Whitsundays and discovering the surrounding islands shortly after. Tourism arrived in the 1920s with galvanised iron huts accomodating locals and holidaymakers. The resort arrived in the early 1980s, following Queensland tourism’s entrepreneur Keith William’s purchase of the island in the mid 1970s. He built a commercial airport, harbour and resort from scratch, and then in 2003 sold the island onto renowned Australian winemaker, Robert Oatley, whose family owns the island today.
RGB: 226, 235, 231 CMYK: 6, 5, 7, 0
Colour Palette
RGB: 173, 108, 84
CMYK: 27, 62, 68, 10
RGB: 232, 220, 198 CMYK: 8, 11, 22, 0
RGB: 216, 135, 100 CMYK: 13, 54, 64, 1
RGB: 244, 246, 121 CMYK: 7, 0, 63, 0
RGB: 211, 105, 83 CMYK: 13, 71, 70, 2
