New York City-based studio Dutch East Design has been tapped by architect and developer Becker + Becker complete the interior scheme and branding for Hotel Marcel, the first net-zero emissions hotel in the USA.
Occupying the former Armstrong Rubber Company headquarters – a concrete box designed by Hungarian-born architect Marcel Breuer to act like a sculpture on a large green space during the Brutalist movement of the late 1960s – in New Haven, Conneticut, the 165-room property will open its doors later this year.
The new hotel will re-introduce the public to the raw beauty of Brutalism, with the structure’s architecture leading the narrative and the interior design offering a softer juxtaposition to the concrete facade. As such, its colour palette will feature warm earthy tones with a textural build-up of travertine and terracotta.
Interior spaces will also comprise pre-cast and terrazzo staircases, while nine historic offices have been repurposed as Bauhaus-inspired communal areas and guestrooms. There’s bespoke furnishings created by Dutch East Design too, as well as art inspired by German-American textile artist Anni Albers in every room.
As the first Passive House certified hotel in the US too, other sustainable innovations on-site will include electric Tesla vehicle charging stations and a solar micro-grid, which will power the entire development.
