JW Marriott Baku opens OroNero
Blue Sky Hospitality has recently completed the interiors for an upscale Italian dining destination at the JW Marriott Baku. The bar and restaurant, known as Oronero, is inspired by the mineral wealth of Azerbaijan.
The concept, which plays with the idea of ‘black gold’, transcends fashion, yet takes inspiration from luxury Italian industry. The crafts and tradition of couture, jewellery, artisan furniture, vintage cars, gastronomy and fine wines are all reimagined with the cinematographic approach to story-telling that has come to define every new creation by Henry Chebaane, the founder of Blue Sky Hospitality.
The OroNero lounge is styled as a high-fashion private jet, with burnished gold buffalo leather panels, pink gold snake upholstery, black gold leather seats and fretwork panels in ebonized timber. A prosecco bar, grappa library and salumi kitchen clad in black marble provide grazing food and specialty drinks until late at night.
Furthermore, the jewel-box restaurant is anchored by a walk-in wine cellar and an alternative to the show kitchen idea: the cooking area is enclosed by translucent golden mosaic screens, so that only the shadows and movements of the chefs working behind it can be seen by the diners.
In keeping with the ‘black gold’ theme, the timber flooring – specially developed by the Blue Sky Hospitality design studio – is amber with black veins. Similarly developed exclusively for the restaurant, the bespoke wool carpet is a piece of conceptual art, evoking splashes of coffee, prosecco, olive oil and fine balsamico to celebrate the creative work of the bar and kitchen teams.
Indeed, Henry Chebaane always includes conceptual art installations in his projects, ensuring that the space asks philosophical questions and engages the imagination of the guests, so delivering more than just aesthetic satisfaction.
Subsequently, there are a number of artworks at OroNero, including ‘Golden Beluga’ – a sturgeon sculpture made of carbon fibre, 24ct gold plated steel and Titanium F1 car parts, and ‘EVOO (Extra Volatile Organic Object)’ – an installation of mouth-blown drop-shaped glass bottles, some filled with extra virgin oil and others with crude oil: a double entendre on the volatility and interconnection of international commodity markets.
