The Royal Hotel by Giannone Petricone Associates Inc. Architects; Photograph by Doublespace
GRAY Media announces the commercial interior design finalists for the 7th Annual GRAY Awards.
SEATTLE, December 20, 2023 — Now in its 7th year, GRAY Awards — the international cross-disciplinary design awards program — continues to recognize the outstanding work happening around the world. Finalists have been selected in the fields of ARCHITECTURE, INTERIORS, LANDSCAPE, and PRODUCT DESIGN.
JUDGES CATEGORIES
Designers and manufacturers were invited to submit their projects in nine judges categories plus an editors’ pick Design for Good category. An esteemed panel of international design luminaries will select a winner in each of the initial nine categories. The winning designers will receive print and digital recognition as well as a custom designed trophy by acclaimed glass artist John Hogan.
GRAY CATEGORIES
GRAY encourages designers and manufacturers to create "Design for Good" projects —projects that have made a positive impact through design on a humanitarian, community, or environmental issue — and offers an award dedicated to these works each year.
In 2020, when the GRAY Awards expanded from a regional to international program, GRAY added a Legacy Award dedicated exclusively to a Pacific Northwest-based designer's lifetime achievement, honoring the region where GRAY began and the home to the GRAY Awards Parties. GRAY will name the next Legacy at the Party.
BREAKOUT CATEGORIES
Newly introduced at the 6th annual GRAY Awards last year, GRAY added several Breakout Categories, opening up opportunities to win GRAY Awards in micro-categories from Kitchens to Collaborations.
All winners will be announced at the GRAY Awards Party held in Seattle in March, 2024. The party is one of the most highly anticipated design bashes of the year, where all guests are treated like winners.
To purchase tickets, visit the 7th annual GRAY Awards Party page.
JUDGES
It is our privilege each year to welcome an international group of distinguished creatives to the GRAY Awards judging panel. Each working at the top of their game, these professionals now focus a discerning eye on determining the winners of the coveted GRAY Awards trophies.
7th annual GRAY Awards judging panel: Lee Broom, Brigitte Shim, Alessandro Munge, Silvia Tcherassi, Stephen Burks
FINALISTS - INTERIOR DESIGN, COMMERCIAL
Photograph by Ema Peter
Located in Vancouver’s Coal Harbour neighbourhood, NOX restaurant explores the fusion of traditional Italian cuisine with Pacific Northwest ingredients. When approached by the restaurant owners, Leckie Studio drew inspiration from the restaurants name, NOX, the Roman goddess of the night. When visitors dine at NOX they are immersed in a deep blue. world. Stained concrete floors and columns, venetian plaster walls, indigo stained plywood ceilings, ceramic tiles, and custom metal work were all meticulously selected and tested to create a space where materials are subtly identified through texture rather than color or hue. The restaurant consists of a primary, street-facing, dining area and a private dining room located at the rear. The kitchen, food pass, and secondary service spaces separate the two dining rooms. As patrons walk to the restrooms, or further to the private dining room, they pass by the vibrant open kitchen allowing them to witness the food that's being prepared for them.
Photograph by Ozimek
Located in the heart of West Queen West, Prime Seafood Palace (PSP) is a culinary escape from the bustling streets of Canada’s most populated city, Toronto.
PSP was imagined as a light-filled wood cathedral, lining an otherwise inconspicuous existing brick-clad building that blends into the city’s urban fabric. This was an exercise in taking the refinement of Omar Gandhi Architects’ (OG) residential work and carrying that rigour through to this commercial project.
The principal goal was to create a timeless space, free of trends, with local, natural materials that develop a patina and continue to enrich the restaurant over time. Designing with wood and light was the starting point for the design. The neutral material palette, comprised primarily of white maple and brass, creates a backdrop for the main act - the unpretentious but exceptional food of cherished Canadian chef Matty Matheson. PSP was also inspired by Matty’s East Coast roots and admiration for Japanese and Scandinavian architecture. The restaurant’s menu reflects a reverence for classic steakhouse principles presented with extraordinary restraint.
Photograph by Douglas Friedman
Perched above the Santa Monica waterfront, The Georgian has been a fixture of the Southern California coastline since its debut in 1933. The exquisite property has undergone a full restoration by hoteliers Jon Blanchard and Nicolo Rusconi of BLVD Hospitality with design led by Fettle, in an effort to creatively ignite its historical spaces while leaning into the true essence of West Coast American Art Deco. Each space has been thoughtfully designed to offer a glimpse into the hotel’s 1930s heyday while underscoring the property’s inherently traditional elements through the use of bespoke materials. Featuring 84 keys (with 56 classic rooms and 28 one-bedroom suites) the hotel’s restoration began when acquired by BLVD and ESI Ventures in August 2020 and was completed in March 2023.
Photograph by Doublespace
Over a decade, Giannone Petricone Associates (GPA) worked with its client to revive and transform the dilapidated 1881 Victorian railway hotel in Picton, Ontario, into a landmark hotel. The Royal Hotel’s restoration is contributing to Prince Edward County’s (PEC) reputation as a cultural hub and burgeoning food and wine region. Central to this mission, GPA embraced the area’s culture and history to establish a distinctive design of global standards.
A key challenge was restoring the lost lustre of the 31,000-square-foot hotel, while also elevating it to a contemporary version of itself. When the project started, the building was in a state of ruin: staircases were waterlogged, floors were lined with thick green moss and just as construction was to begin, the roof caved in. The design team salvaged three of the four walls and reconfigured the back of the building to add terraces and open the interior to increased natural light. The project brief imagined a welcoming environment for all, and a new span of glazing at the street level opened the hotel to the community, fostering an energetic exchange between the interior and the sidewalk. Inside, the team created 28 guestrooms, a restaurant, street-front café, gym and spa. The former hotel stables were also rebuilt as an annex with five suites suitable for families, extended stays or even staff accommodation.
Photograph by Hall Merrick McCaugherty
Design firm HDR partnered with acoustics innovator Turf to reimagine their Chicago showroom. The refreshed Turf Experience Center, located in THE MART, spotlights Turf’s ability to reshape the future of acoustic design in commercial spaces with fully customizable products and architectural applications showcased within the space.
The approximately 4,000 square-foot space shows off Turf’s vast array of acoustic solutions and clearly demonstrates how specifiers can use each to design welcoming spaces. Color-blocked rooms, using Turf’s proprietary Hues palette, demonstrate the different experiences each product can\ produce. The showroom is divided into themed rooms that guide visitors through a sensory experience to help them understand the connections between sight, sound, smell, and proprioception (perception of body movement and position).
7th Annual GRAY Awards finalists' announcements began December 18, 2023 and will continue to publish daily until all categories have been announced. For more information, visit our GRAY Awards Party page.
Thank you to our 7th annual GRAY Awards sponsors and industry partners:
