Your Studio KOHLER Workspace
Your Studio KOHLER Workspace
Prior to 2020, incorporating hands-free technology into our daily routines seemed more like a novelty reserved for the convenience of multitasking (“Alexa, please order more toilet paper.”) than a necessary health precaution. That notion abruptly changed earlier this year when the world received an unexpected introduction to COVID-19—including airborne and surface stabilities—causing raised expectations of cleanliness and accelerating creative solutions for a contactless society.
The hospitality industry has taken this to heart as consumers begin to test their own comfort levels in public spaces. Hotel owners and operators are relying on architects and designers to maintain on-brand experiences while adhering to new service requirements and social distancing. This has Mark Hayes, a principal at the firm Stonehill Taylor in New York, wondering, “What’s considered healthy?” Hayes believes that the perspective has changed from the amenities that support a healthy body, such as access to a yoga studio or fitness center, to fundamental health where surfaces are clean and touchable.
“There are a lot of technologies that we’ve been talking about for a long time such as hands-free guest room access and hands-free fixtures in bathrooms,” says Hayes. “However, can we turn on the lights and draw the curtains and turn on the TV or contact the front desk without touching a phone or remote? We’ve been thinking about it for a while, and it’s all cool and gadget-y, but with coronavirus, we can’t get these things soon enough.”
While automated features are top of mind for those designing in “the new norm,” many experts believe that a guest’s basic needs will not change, although those needs should not be a struggle. Therefore, innovative technology should only serve to enhance the personal preferences that define a guest’s stay, from adequate lighting and ambience to the temperature of water. According to Hayes, technology takes it to another level, meeting a guest’s psychological needs in addition to basic necessities. “We give them an environment that nourishes the soul.”
“This is what makes the adaptation of wellness in luxury a natural one,” adds Clint Nagata, founder of the Bangkok-based design group BLINK. No doubt, turning basic necessities into magical moments creates a special place, and design firms are constantly pushing the envelope from one project to the next.
“We are working on a beautiful site in Thailand where we are trying to maintain existing trees and place the restaurant within this great grove of trees,” says Nagata. “Time away from the office has really allowed me to rethink how we do things and why we design a certain way. I’ve been looking to put a lot of green into urban hotels, into guest rooms, and just bring a more holistic natural approach into our designs.”
Thoughtful consideration for how we engage with our surroundings has long been an integral if not primary focus of architecture and design. Increasingly, with guests’ wellbeing in greater focus, hotel and resort settings are intended to stimulate “self-actualization” and illuminate one’s best self.
“Wellbeing is about creating places where people can contemplate life,” says Hayes. “Where it’s rest and relaxation.”
Hayes points to the Saint Kate in Milwaukee, singularly focused on art, the Eliza Jane in New Orleans for its connecting spaces in a series of historic buildings, and The Moxy Chelsea in New York that greets guests with a lush, green multistory atrium just a few steps from the bustling street. While these projects were completed before the onset of COVID-19, their design features draw upon an awareness and appreciation for that which is sacred, serene, and sustainable—nuances that have earned heightened appeal.
Sustainability has played an especially important role in design for well-being. Hotel atmospheres that maintain an ecological balance help emphasize air quality, natural light, sound, water features, and often support local trade. When thoughtfully considered, these elements immerse guests in an experience that inherently feels luxurious for its overall sense of health and vitality.
“Water is a very primal part of design,” explains Hayes, who is drawn to water’s influence in cultural and religious traditions for its cleansing and purification qualities. “Seventy-five or eighty percent of the cost of the guest room is devoted to how we clean and pamper ourselves, so how do we bring water into our spaces with nature, and what are the water technologies in those spaces?”
This extends to the pampering hub of most hotels and resorts—the spa—which has seen an evolution of its own as “wellbeing” takes on new meaning.
“Spa used to be the in word, but we don’t call them spas anymore; they are wellness centers,” says Nagata. “Because it’s no longer just a massage or getting pampered, it’s a change of lifestyle. It’s embracing a shift and making yourself better. We are seeing projects that are large wellness-center-focused resorts. It’s not about just going to the beach and getting a tan anymore. It’s about improving your health and coming out of it feeling refreshed at the most.”
As hotels continue to hone in on attentiveness to health and wellbeing, and guests expect more from the destinations they visit, architects and designers are enthusiastic about delivering a win-win.
“We create the future, we build things, that’s our nature, and so it’s our responsibility to make that future a healthy one,” says Hayes. “That gives us a chance to really look at what we’ve been doing, see where we are, and see how we’ll do things better in the future.”
Click here for more insights from this Kohler Bold Talk featuring Hayes and Nagata discussing Kohler’s 2020 Perspective of the Year: Dimensions of Wellbeing.
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