Gildas Surry Hills by Atoma Design
Designed by Atoma Design, Gildas Surry Hills was inspired by Rita Hayworth’s character in the 1946 film of the same name – the space exudes warmth, light and grace.
Words: Hande Renshaw I Photography: Katherine Lu
Photo: Katherine Lu
Photo: Katherine Lu
The brief for Gildas in Sydney’s Surry Hills was for a feminine, light and warm architecture that would draw inspiration from Gilda, Rita Hayworth’s character in the film of the same name.
Atoma Design were approached by renowned chef Lennox Hastie to create a sister bar to Lennox’s restaurant Firedoor – the studio utilised strong curved forms and rounded details to deliver an intimate and elegant space.
‘The forms [in the space] are purposefully orientated towards the existing arch windows, activating the street frontage in the heritage conservation area,’ says Atoma Design.
The design features a cut-away from the ceiling volume to further highlight the existing curved arch windows, drawing in light while expanding the height of the interior.
The curvaceous elements in the space interact with smaller rounded details and materiality, including a brass folded ribbon that snakes its way around the bar and on top of the banquette seating. Both functional and elegant, the ribbon creates a place for bottles of wine and waiter stations. An earthy green colour pallette grounds the design and is an interpretation of the green dress worn by the actress in the movie.
Softply chairs by Adam Goodram for NAU and Cult were selected for their curved and relaxed back, further playing with the feminine language of the interior design. The feature artwork by Tan Arlidge has been developed as a custom piece for the restaurant. The artwork is fluid and deeply connected to the concept.
