The firm has completed a wide range of projects including offices, shopping centres and residences, but it is the design of hotels for which it has become best known. It seems fitting then, that Moren’s very first hotel project as a young director at a South African practice gained iconic status. When it opened in the 1980s, the 30-storey beachfront hotel in Durban, a Holiday Inn at the time, was highly publicised for its Art Deco style and taught the architect the all-important basics of hotel design.
Moren has been designing hotels ever since, putting his success down to solid relationships and repeat clients. Yet the architect isn’t one to take all the credit. That, he saves for his fellow directors, associates and team of designers. The firm’s most recent project is InterContinental London Westminster, which opened its doors in December 2012. DMA was appointed to convert Queen Anne’s Chambers, a former government office, into a luxury hotel. The project was a
six-year struggle, not without its challenges. Key internal spaces were re-planned and reconfigured to maximise their potential and facilitate the necessary upgrade of services, while the public spaces have been designed as a series of rooms that transition seamlessly into one another. Major architectural interventions include the creation of a new porte cochère built within the existing façade, and structural modifications across the lower ground floor to allow for conference facilities. Amongst a plethora of other projects due for completion over the next 18 months, the team is also working as executive architect on the Shangri-La Hotel, within Renzo Piano’s London landmark, The Shard. But perhaps the biggest progression for the firm is the creation of its interiors division. What started as occasional support for regular clients has developed into a 10-strong team of designers creating interiors for a rising number of international hotel projects. Having built a portfolio in the residential sector, it was
the interior design at The Ampersand Hotel that has won the team recognition amongst the hotel elite. “We were quite excited at the opportunity of doing things at a five-star level and I think with The Ampersand we’ve shown what we can do,” explains Moren. The award- winning design scheme draws inspiration from the hotel’s locale and demonstrates an ability to translate themes such as botany, ornithology and astronomy into relevant interior features. Success at The Ampersand has also led to
new ventures: “At the moment we have a very big sports project which actually comes out of a happy hotel client,” he continues. The firm was invited by the same developer to produce a façade design for FC Spartak Moscow’s new stadium, an arena that will also serve as a key venue for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. DMA’s design is composed of a series of giant shingles inspired by the Spartak Moscow diamond insignia to create an armour-like effect. Currently under construction, the
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