HOSPITALITY DESIGN – IN LIVING COLOR – ROSE INK WORKSHOP'S BOLD TAKE ON PALM SPRINGS

May 1, 2017

Like any resort destination, Palm Springs, California is deeply mired in its own legend. That’s where fresh eyes come in. Enter designer Liubasha Rose, principal of Miami-based Rose Ink Workshop, who had never visited the city before taking on the renovation of the public spaces of the Riviera, one of the area’s storied hotels. She discovered a “great design city where each hotel has a specific design story,” she says.

A previous renovation at the 399-room property – a 1959 celebrity haven that was a favorite of the likes of Frank Sinatra and Elizabeth Taylor and known for its spoke-shaped footprint by architect Irwin Schuman (the first to be built that way) – had “stacked all the chips on that history,” she adds. The quintessential midcentury color – orange, which also happened to be Sinatra’s favorite hue – and portraits of the Rat Pack made the property “feel Vegas-y. It didn’t speak to or reflect [Palm Springs],” she says.

The goal for the refresh wasn’t to “disconnect from the star-studded past,” she explains, “but rather to tie into the city and use that retro vibe in a more unexpected and eclectic way.” To do that, she took inspiration from Slim Aarons photos and focused on the hotel’s arrival sequence, which involves passing through an arcade that links the reception area and lobby landing lounge – now zipped with coral, mint, and turquoise hues, palm print pillows, tweed seating, graphic carpet, and latticework screens – to the guest rooms.