‘nobis hotel’ by claesson koivisto rune, stockholm, sweden images courtesy of ake e:son lindman

swedish studio, claesson koivisto rune has completed ‘nobis hotel’, a design that merges two 19th century residential structures together in stockholm, sweden. the hotel is composed of 201 guest rooms. featuring elements of extravagant eclecticism and eccentricity, the succession of spaces – from the entrance to the lobby, lounge, corridors and rooms – seamlessly flow while being distinct in their identity and detailing. a warm and subdued color scheme accented with geometric patterns and textural fabrics unites the 8,750 square meter space.

various seating arrangements in the lobby can accommodate up to 50 guests

an atrium houses a generous lobby with pockets of intimate seating areas. condensed ‘living rooms’, each original in their furnishings and arrangements, are scattered around the space allowing visitors to socialize in a variety of manners.

lobby custom pieces, including 170 individual designs – 20 of which were designed specifically for the hotel -are used in combination with found and vintage pieces, further elaborating on the unique and distinct character given to each environment.

lounge

‘towards the end of the 19th century, every self-respecting city erected what it considered to be its biggest and best hotel. it was usually named ‘grand hotel’ and was more often than not paid for out of the private pockets of wealthy barons. these hotels are often still in use today and have a charm that maybe only a century-old ideal of quality can give. today, such barons are rare and modern times do not allow an armada of italian stucco carvers and french cabinet-makers to be called in. but is this why today’s boutique- and design hotels seldom succeed in creating a worthy equivalent to the atmosphere that pervades classic 19th century interiors? could it be the difference in style ideals; neoclassicism versus modernism? or is it something else that is being missed? these were some of the thoughts we had concerning what sort of interior spaces we wanted to create at nobis hotel.’ claesson koivisto rune

detail of lights

‘amongst other things we concluded that an uncompromising attitude together with a certain amount of eccentricity was necessary. no detail was less important than another. and matching is not about an ever-present, repeated furniture model or colour rather it is about a consolidated personal selection. the entrance, lobby, lounge, corridors and rooms follow each other in a conscious succession where the character alters with every step. the extravagant gold bar, the french-inspired 24/7 bistro facing norrmalmstorg, the italian trattoria caina on the floor below, the relax area entirely clad in marble and the conference section with its original wooden panelling preserved have each been given a distinctly different character.’ claesson koivisto rune

bistro

‘despite the differences in character, each space flows into the next so that the spatial context is strong. most of the work lay in making openings and spaces between the entrance, lobby, bar and ’living room’ – the generous lounge. F for example, the joist floor structure, an old addition to the original building, was completely removed in order to recreate the full height of the original inner courtyard. the colour scheme and lighting design is also warm and subdued throughout. we call it scandinavian dark blond. and as another recurring theme there are subtle patterns, in many cases derived from our own abstracted architectural drawings. like the corridor carpeting and the wallpaper in the conference section. or like the hand-milled wardrobe doors which sprang from the rooms’ curtain pattern. apattern that is in turn a play with a plan of a gallery building in kumla we had recently completed.’ claesson koivisto rune

gold bar

‘apart from the fixed interior features like, for example, the reception desk in rusted and waxed solid shipping steel, a large number of new furniture designs, textiles and lamps have been developed specifically for the hotel. one hundred and seventy individual designs are included in the final assemblage. about twenty were uniquely designed by us for this hotel and seventy more are variations of our earlier designs.

architecturally speaking, there are few more complex undertakings than a hotel. our contribution to this project spanned approximately 20 months. during this time, besides continuous nursing, the general architectural concept was laid out, the planning and restructuring of the central communal areas around lobby, lounge and restaurants were made as well as the furnishing of 201 guest rooms of which there are 115 variations.’ claesson koivisto rune

the living room of the ‘nobis suite’ is the only white room in the hotel

‘traveling for pleasure a few times a year is one thing, but when you do it every week, getting up at four in the morning to catch the red-eye flight, then sitting in meetings all day long and going out for a business dinner before you finally get to go back to the hotel — then you really know what you want from that hotel and your room. staying in hotels is something that’s forced upon you, so it should at least feel good and soothing, really comfortable and relaxing for all the senses. the fewer nuisances, the better. design gimmicks as seen in so many hotels over the past decade or more, like a giant log painted in gold in the lobby, for example, are usually amusing the first time you visit the hotel. the next time, they’re less amusing. the third time, you just want to throw the damned thing out — if you ever come back that many times, that is.’ mårten claesson

the bedroom of the ‘nobis suite’

‘this doesn’t mean that all rooms should be different, however. that’s s another gimmick that’s been a big trend in hotels lately, which we’d like to `kill´ here. as a professional traveler, you want to find a hotel that you like to return to, as close to a home away from home that you can get. that’s the kind of hotel this should be. then you don’t want a completely different room each time you return. you want to have at least a general idea of where everything is, how everything works and feels. we’re fully confident that people will like this hotel, like the rooms, and want to return to them, not to something completely different every time.’ ola rune

detail of custom wardrobe

‘in the rooms, and in the rest of the hotel, we’ve worked with the ambition of creating interiors of the kind that you would encounter in a private home, assembled over a longer period of time. it sounds simple, but it’s far from easy to achieve this effect in a hotel. it takes a lot of care and effort, for example by carefully selecting products from different manufacturers and designers, instead of many products from one and the same brand which will give that `corporate´ feel that we’re trying very hard to avoid.’ mårten claesson

lounge area in one of the private suites

‘when you have little time to spend in your hotel room, it’s important that everything is functioning well and easily accessible. every detail is crucial. that’s why, for this hotel, we can spend a week discussing the position and functions of a lamp in a corner somewhere.’ ola rune

details of textures

exterior facade

physical model in claesson koivisto rune’s studio image © designboom

model of nobis hotel image © designboom

designboom editor-in-chief birgit lohmann at claesson koivisto rune’s studio in stockholm image © designboom

floor plan / level 0

typical floor plan

section

illustration of exterior

illustration of overall plan

project data

project name: nobis hotel address: norrmalmstorg 2-4 client: nobis group, sandro catenacci architects: claesson koivisto rune architects contractor: ebab total floor area: 8750 kvm year of construction of the south building: 1884-86 year of construction of the north building: 1890-93 re-construction year: 2010

claesson koivisto rune’s new book ‘nobis hotel, architecture and design’ image © designboom