W ATLANTA MIDTOWN, GEORGIA

Posted in News, Projects on 22 October, 2019

With Atlanta, Georgia, experiencing a surge of regeneration in the last few years, it seems fitting that Marriott’s W Atlanta hotels have also had a revamp, with W Atlanta Midtown completing works in time to celebrate its tenth birthday.

Having completed a top-to-bottom renovation, W Atlanta Midtown marks a new chapter for one of the largest W Hotels in the world. Celebrating its first decade, much like the other W offerings in the area, W Atlanta Midtown has had its first major design overhaul since the hotel’s opening in 2009. With a substantial chunk of money in the pot for the renovations, the property’s 466 guestrooms, including 33 specialty suites have all been reimagined as well as over 40,000 square feet of high-tech meeting and special event space rejuvenation, completed in 2018 as part of the work carried out on the hotel.

Drawing from Atlanta’s home within a forest and all the beautiful flora and fauna in the city, the design for the public spaces, including the Welcome area and the Living Room, features a forbidden garden motif. In addition to the floral overtones, the spaces include curated art that a world traveller would collect, reflecting how Atlanta is the gateway to anywhere in the world. The W brand is known for its bold décor choices, offering fascination and surprise for its guests, and the public spaces in W Atlanta Midtown do not disappoint. The Living Room ceiling displays a mural with large colourful flowers that pop against a sharp black background conceptualised by Virserius Studio and executed by DAC. Oversized pendant light fixtures shaped like birdcages dot the ceiling for a dramatic effect, while butterfly and flower sculptures, created by Prince Design UK and Redwood Stoneworks, are seen throughout the space.

The Living Room’s newly designed layout improves the flow and connects the full service bar to the patio, which provides more seating and lounging area, expanding on the hotel’s ability to attract city influencers for drinks and dining. Guests can sip on fragrant cocktails filled with floral flavours, expertly crafted by the best bartenders and mixologists in the city. The menu, created by Executive Chef Aaron Baxendale, focuses on sharing plates filled with local ingredients that reflect the season with hints of global spices. The bar’s design is focused around transparency, how people interact with one another and how they can see through the bar from the entry and all the way to the patio. Playing off of the hotel’s passion for music, guests can see playful music-inspired décor in their rooms, plus new furniture featuring clean lines, bold colours, and mod vibes. Carefully curated to transport visitors to the ultimate Atlanta experience, each room features artworks that speak to the iconic locale. Wall art installations in all the rooms, created by Virserius Studio-owned art consultancy Imaggo Production, are an ode to Atlanta as the epicentre of music and entertainment. The suites feature graphic wood panelling, as well as retro wood slats that serve to separate the sleeping area from the living space. Textures are varied and plentiful in the guestrooms, with some rooms featuring an interesting mix of dark but light-reflecting tiling on the floor and light, naturally matte colours on the walls, and others with ombre or patterned carpeting and textured walls. Each room includes carefully curated amenities to keep guests firmly in the here and now, with various mod-cons including Bluetooth speakers, flat screen TVs, glass door showers with rain showerheads, and luxury bath products.

Alongside the W brand’s award-winning design team, Virserius Studio, a New York and Paris-based interior lifestyle branding firm specialising in hotel, restaurant, and event spaces, crafted the immersive redesign of W Atlanta Midtown. Globally recognised for their work, the partnering firm is currently working on projects across the US, Africa, and Europe. Their designs are intriguing and unexpected – a perfect fit for the W brand’s bold design sensibilities (catch Therese Virserius’s interview with Rick Evans on page 60).

The renovations have been completed in conjunction with the reimagining of Colony Square, an exciting modern addition to the neighbourhood to which the hotel is connected. Colony Square will bring new culinary concepts, retail, and entertainment steps from W guests at the newly renovated hotel, and with added intrigue and an alluring demeanour, W has given its guests something to marvel over yet again.

www.marriott.com