East makes USA debut
Swire Properties’ East brand has debuted in America with East Miami, a hotel located at Swire’s $1.05 billion Brickell City Centre development.
A global design team from Miami, Los Angeles, New York and Europe collaborated on the design of the building and its interiors, with Arquitectonica, Clodagh Designs, Indiewalls, Studio Collective and Design Ribbon all being involved in the development process.
The 40-storey complex will feature 352 guestrooms and suites, two restaurants and bars, an outdoor patio with four pools, public spaces and conference and banquet rooms. The dynamic lifestyle hotel will be located in the heart of Miami’s financial district and combine modernist design with natural interiors.
“I want the guests to enjoy a necklace of beautiful experiences, while also feeling a sense that they have been here before. That warm feeling of nostalgia and harmony is the target,” comments Clodagh, the designer responsible for the interiors at East, Miami. “To me, there is no such thing as an inanimate object, so including pieces and finishes with good energy was paramount.”
Design elements will include open decks, sculptural furniture, bridge and pathway transitions between spaces and locally sourced art, sculptures, paintings and photographs.
East, Miami will be home to two restaurant and bar experiences: Quinto La Huella, the parrilla grill inspired by Uruguay’s beachside Parador La Huella, and Sugar, the rooftop bar and garden located on the 40th floor. Both were designed by Los Angeles-based Studio Collective and draw aesthetic inspiration from the jungles of Southeast Asia.
Framing the hotel’s fifth floor is the brand’s signature climate ribbon, which forms an architectural canopy over the expansive porch and pool deck shared with Quinto La Huella, providing shade and natural cooling. The climate ribbon is a $30 million elevated trellis that spans 150,000ft2. Glazed to protect pedestrians from rain, and designed to collect an estimated three million gallons of rainwater annually, its undulating shape encourages Miami’s prevailing breezes to flow through the concourse.
