The Curtain, Shoreditch

Architects Dexter Moren Associates and interior designers Duncan Miller Ullmann have collaborated on the first London property for hotelier Michael Achenbaum. The Curtain, Shoreditch.  Words: Matt Turner | Photography: © Adrian Gaut / Andy Stagg

The Curtain is a hotel – and much more besides – where music takes centre stage. Portraits of rock icons by legendary photographer Mick Rock can be found everywhere – even inside the wardrobes. The Red Rooster restaurant by Obamaendorsed US chef Marcus Samuelsson celebrates the food and culture of Harlem (where the original restaurant is located) with live music on stage and the likes of Ella Fitzgerald and Amy Winehouse gazing down from walls. The minibars are stocked with enough premium spirits to quench the thirst of any TV-throwing rock star. And in the basement private members club, there is a fully soundproofed performance space, apparently modelled on CBGB – the club that defined the punk scene of downtown New York in the 1970s before gentrification swept it away. Hotelier Michael Achenbaum is no stranger to the effects of such urban renewal, having been the first hotelier to open a luxury hotel – the Gansevoort – in New York’s Meatpacking district in 2004. So it’s no surprise to find he has opened his first European property here in fast-evolving Shoreditch, in an industrial, newbuild brick structure that wouldn’t look out of place on the streets of Manhattan or Brooklyn, but one that also references the warehouse buildings that proliferated in London in the 19th century.

The biggest surprises here lie inside the building – in the sheer scale and variety of facilities that have been introduced, in the eclecticism of the hotel’s interiors, and perhaps also in the choice of Dallasbased design firm Duncan Miller Ullmann to bring Achenbaum’s vision to life. A London-based practice might have been a more predictable choice – but the Curtain is a hotel where you can expect the unexpected around every corner. This nine-storey building, on the site of a former 1970s office block on the corner of Curtain Rd, accommodates not just a 120 guestroom hotel, but an expansive private members club; the Red Rooster restaurant and tacqueria; a live music venue; a rooftop Mediterranean style brasserie alongside a heated outdoor pool beneath a retractable roof; not to mention a 200 capacity ballroom, a gym / wellness centre and a screening room.

Dexter Moren Associates were architects for the project: “Our design reflects the industrial warehouse aesthetic of this part of Shoreditch,” says Zoe Tallon, referencing the red brickwork, profiled metal panels, Crittall-style windows and bullnose brick sills of the exterior. “Inspiration came from the many cabinet factories and warehouses that previously stood on the site. In these buildings the block is broken up vertically by the delivery doors to the warehouse; this also has the visual effect of breaking down a large facade into a smaller, more residential scale. The Curtain design uses this device to break up the visual mass of the building while retaining its overall cohesion by the use of brickwork throughout.”

Interiors are by Duncan Miller Ullman, in a style described by Creative Director Chris Machero as ‘rustic-industrial’. “We have created a sense of whimsy by combining luxury materials and amenities,” says Machero. “We wanted to take inspiration from Shoreditch – an inner city district in the historic East End of London where a real creative energy and mix of cultures interlock. Our concept was to take these foundations and create a narrative that would embrace this gentrified neighborhood but also give it something we believe it needs – a luxury hotel that mixes art, fashion, and architecture.” They have used materials such as raw brick, hand-scraped wood flooring, and ceramic bath tiles with patterned mosaics to create the hotel’s individual aesthetic.

In the double height lobby, blindfolded silver stag busts overlook a crystal chandelier which is suspended above the large scaled chevron patterned porcelain tiles. In the adjacent Tienda Roosteria, tacos and tequilas are served in a space accessible through the lobby or from the street. The Red Rooster Restaurant below is a riot of pattern, colour and brica- brac, influenced by Harlem’s Apollo theatre as well as various London and New York neighbourhoods and featuring retro pieces from Style Matters. Its menu offers Marcus Samuelsson’s take on American soul food classics, staples of the original Harlem restaurant menu rubbing shoulders with dishes newly created for the Shoreditch restaurant. Much of The Curtain is housed below street level. Says Zoe Tallon of Dexter Moren Associates: “We established almost on day one that the basement was completely critical to the success of the project. A restrictive Rights of Light envelope constrained development above ground, which left nowhere to go but down. This presented a number of daunting challenges, such as below ground contamination and archaeology works as the site was potentially located directly above a 17th century plague pit.”

These subterranean members club areas include the Imperial Room – a garden conservatory inspired by the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party and decorated in Osborne & Little Butterfly Garden fabrics; Billy’s whisky bar, providing a more intimate atmosphere with its wood paneling, pin-striped walls, and refurbished antique bar; and a double-height conference space / ballroom situated in the centre of the basement. There is also a fitness area where the latest state-ofthe- art cardio-equipment sits against a vintage backdrop reminiscent of a school gym.

Atop the hotel is Mediterranean brasserie Lido, a white-washed, plant-filled space featuring blue and cream faux-wood tiles and a Moroccan mosaic-tiled pool in bright hues of aquamarine beneath its retractable glass roof. Guestrooms feature exposed brick walls, hardwood flooring, and black-framed factory windows. Artworks by Pete Hawkins are suspended on chains over the bed’s headboard. Casegoods are by Portuguese firm Ozo Living. Chesterfield sofas are clad in racing green leathers by Moore & Giles. The marble bathrooms were designed in collaboration with CP Hart and include heated floor tiles, Crosswater showerheads, and Effegibi steam generators in the suites. The final piece of the jigsaw is a co-working space set to open for the use of members and hotel guests in late Autumn 2017. Sources: Sleeper, 9-10, 2017

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