Hotel Schani Vienna
Tradition-conscious modernity is on the agenda at family-run Hotel Schani. Architecture and design practice archisphere has successfully carried out a contemporary interpretation of Viennese coffee house culture in the lobby by using custom-made furniture and referencing typical local structural features in unusual ways. The designers turned the charming exposed water pipes common in the city’s older buildings into a recurring motif throughout the space: standard hardware store pipes were used to create yellow-lacquered wall shelves, table legs and frames for the breakfast buffet or a structural base for a cosy seating nook by the windows. A mobile partition wall features shiny matt brass surfaces. The rear buffet shelf is covered outside meal times and forms an elegant backdrop for different events before completely disappearing into the neighbouring room the next morning. The hotel’s farsighted approach is demonstrated by its collaboration with the Fraunhofer Institute’s FutureHotel project (page 16). This has resulted in a virtual reservation system where guests can secure their desired hotel room in advance and open the door (without stopping off at the front desk) via a smartphone app. In some of the 135 rooms, which include 10 maisonettes, new product solutions are being deployed and tested, such as controlled lighting effects or energy-saving technologies. These innovations provide support without being intrusive: the guest is always the primary focus.
