Inside 1 Hotel Toronto, the city’s new sustainable masterpiece

1 Hotel Toronto - collage
730 565 Hamish Kilburn
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Inside 1 Hotel Toronto, the city’s new sustainable masterpiece

New York-based design studio Rockwell Group has unveiled the interiors of the new 1 Hotel in Toronto, Canada’s first ‘mission-driven hotel’ that celebrates the beauty of the city’s natural environment in an urban package that sets a new hospitality standards in sustainable luxury…

1 Hotel Toronto - collage

Two years since whispers of the 1 Hotel brand marking its territory on Canadian soil, Hotel Designs is finally able to take a sneak peak inside 1 Hotel Toronto – and it was worth the wait!

Rockwell Group’s design concept for new the latest lifestyle hotel to emerge on the city’s hospitality scene reframes the city – turning its urbanism inside out, responding to the question: “What if a luxury hotel was an inviting portal to the natural world, instead of a flight from it?”.

“Our vision for the hotel invites guests to celebrate Toronto’s ecology through materiality and locally-made artwork.” – David Rockwell, Founder, Rockwell Group.

“We have long admired 1 Hotels’ sustainable and eco-friendly ethos, and we are thrilled to have been given the opportunity to design the new 1 Hotel Toronto with a biophilic emphasis,” said David Rockwell, Founder, Rockwell Group. “Our vision for the hotel invites guests to celebrate Toronto’s ecology through materiality and locally-made artwork.” Every corner of the design narrative unconsciously reflects a strong sense of place. The material palette for the hotel, for example, takes inspiration from the muted colours of Lake Ontario and the contrasting tones of the passing seasons and features reclaimed timber, native plants, board-formed concrete, and local marble.

The hotel’s lobby welcomes guests to a warm and nest-like space surrounded by floor-to-ceiling glass windows, which create a light box at night, as well as a feeling of seamlessness between indoors and out. The entrance to the hotel is framed with a mix of granite and limestone boulders, maple trees, local plants, warm wood, and a trailing green canopy, all reminiscent of Canada’s natural landscape.

1 Hotel Toronto lobby - with a sustainable design scheme

Image credit: Brandon Barre

It features 4.5 metre-high ceilings, reclaimed Elm wood flooring and shelving sourced from a dismantled barn in Ontario. Additional sustainable design details include a living green wall, found objects, local stone and reclaimed furnishings from materials such as elm wood and teak root.

Plants and natural materials in lobby lounge of 1 Hotel Toronto

Image credit: Brandon Barre

A stone wall with wood-like striations – carved out of glacial activity along the Eramosa River – serves as the backdrop to an art installation designed by Toronto-based artists Moss & Lam behind the check- in desk.

Once first impressions have been made, guests can discover that 1 Hotel offers an all-round dining and drinking experience, with a selection of two restaurants and two bars spread throughout the hotel.

The modern 1 Kitchen has a vintage vibe and is located in a glass-walled conservatory-like space with a vaulted wood ceiling and curved trusses hung with greenery. Sourcing all food ingredients from within a 50 km radius, 1 Kitchen is a neighbourhood destination that welcomes both hotel guests and locals alike.

In harmony with the local and crafted design scheme, Madera is an organic Mexican restaurant follows the design cues of the hotel, with sand-blasted textured wood, greenery, wooden dining chairs crafted by Benchmark, reclaimed live edge wood tabletops, artistic handmade vessels, and modern, vibrant lighting.

Harriet’s is the city’s newest rooftop hotspot featuring an open concept sushi bar with sliding glass walls and a retractable roof, to get the best out of the breathtaking city and lake views. The design details recall Toronto’s flora and fauna, with a woven rope ceiling interspersed between wood beams, reclaimed Elm wood flooring and leather and lambskin accents.

Harriets on rooftop of 1 Hotel Toronto

Image credit: Brandon Barre

The light and airy guestrooms at 1 Hotel Toronto feature sliding barn wood doors dividing the bedroom and bathroom. The studio added warmth to the Carrara marble bathrooms by utilising Hickory wood surrounds for the vanities. A natural wood accent wall is added behind the bed, with a leather headboard. An art piece comprised of a fallen tree fragment, sourced by a local wood studio, completes the design.

On the collaboration with 1 Hotel, Rockwell Group’s Founder David Rockwell says “We have long admired 1 Hotels’ sustainable and eco-friendly ethos, and we are thrilled to have been given the opportunity to design the new 1 Hotel Toronto with a biophilic emphasis. Our vision for the hotel invites guests to celebrate Toronto’s ecology through materiality and locally-made artwork.”

Main image credit: Brandon Barre

Hamish Kilburn / 19.10.2021

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