Ace Hotel Group is set to launch its maiden Australian outpost, Ace Hotel Sydney, in May 2022 within the historic Tyne House brick factory in the city’s Surry Hills section. Atelier Ace is partnering with Melbourne-based Flack Studio on the design of the 264-room property, which will also mark the brand’s first location in the Southern Hemisphere.
“Though its culture and character are all its own, we’ve always felt a strong affinity with Australia—its intrepid optimism and renegade spirit resonates with Ace’s roots on the Pacific Coast of America,” says Ace Hotel Group president Brad Wilson. “We love the country’s distinctive brand of modernism, particularly in the use of local organic materials, and were lucky enough to find a perfectly modernist partner in Flack Studio. David’s eye for color and space is completely singular—a dream design collaborator for our first hotel in Australia.”
Inspired by the rich history of Surry Hills and the warm, cinematic color story of the Australian landscape, the hotel will recall the city’s past through contrasting textures and tones. Organic materials like acoustic straw walls in guestrooms and the ochre red lobby staircase will echo some of the neighborhood’s most historic periods—from gang wars and underground liquor trade of the 1920s and ’30s to the modernist art boom of the 1960s and beyond.
Public spaces like the ground floor restaurant, bar, and café or the lively F&B space on the rooftop will reflect the rhythm of Surry Hills as well, while guestrooms will showcase Aussie craftsmanship with custom furniture, joinery, and lighting by Flack Studio.
“Surry Hills has been home to so many culturally important movements and people, and has always been a home for creatives and migrating cultures,” says David Flack, founder and director of Flack Studio. “We wanted to preserve the creative, slightly renegade energy of the space since its origins as one of Australia’s early brickworks. We were committed to creating a warm space that brought together Australia’s cultural history with Ace’s unique, community cultivating approach to hospitality.”
More from HD:
Introducing the Winners of the 17th Annual HD Awards
Ace Hotel Opens Outpost in Brooklyn
Behind the Scenes of Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Project