Erik Nissen Johansen loves a good story. As creative director and senior partner at Stylt, a Swedish firm of architects and identity consultants, he and his colleagues find a story that inspires them and design everything from the overall brand to the sofa cushions and menu fonts around it. Which is exactly why Reval Hotels, the leading chain in the Baltic countries, hired them to develop the concept for its first hotel in Russia.

While searching for inspiration in St. Petersburg, Johansen asked a famous local chef what was the best guidebook to the city. His answer: Crime and Punishment. "He said it’s the most accurate portrait ever written of the city," says Johansen. "But if you ask anyone from St. Petersburg, they tend to agree. It’s a good mirroring image of the city, all the emotions and all the contrasts." The big task, of course, was convincing the fairly conservative Reval Hotels that branding the hotel after the not-so-inviting-sounding-title was a good idea. Johansen managed to get buy-in on the full story, ultimately convincing the owners to even name the city’s first contemporary boutique hotel after a prostitute in the book—Sonya. 

Throughout the 173-room hotel, references to Dostoevsky’s 1866 novel range from overt to subtle, with a pervasive penchant for signature Russian layers and contrasts. "We looked at a lot of books about home interiors in Russia and tried to understand the preferences; it’s a lot of multi-layers," says Johansen. "In the guestrooms, the four walls have different wallpapers. They may be the same color, with a kind of shade in shade pattern, but if you look, and study them, you see that they are different, which is extremely typical of a Russian home."

The lobby offers the first taste of transformation, bringing guests from the bustling streets in an area of St. Petersburg that Johansen likens to New York’s Meatpacking District in its infancy, to a peaceful space dominated by grand bookshelves, filled with Russian objects, accessories, and books. (Actually, just the one book, but in multiple editions and languages.) Black Matrioshka-inspired ornamentations hang from the bottom of the sleek reception desk, which rests on two handpainted miniature Matrioshka dolls; a giant Russian lacquer box, featuring a handpainted depiction of Crime and Punishment, serves as a sofa; while a custom table shows a 19th century map of St. Petersburg outlining the main character’s feverish walks.

Starting on the second floor, the hotel’s corridors echo a dramatic walk through nighttime St. Petersburg. The carpet’s pattern consists of the initial passages from the novel in English and Russian, corridor signage is designed to look like the spines of old books, and starting with room 201, each room number is surrounded by a sentence in both Russian and English in ascending order (for example, room 504 features the fourth sentence from the fifth chapter of the book). "That way you could actually walk through the corridors reading the book," says Johansen.

Guestrooms are divided into four categories—Conscience, Grace, Rebirth, and Ego—playing on Reval’s typical room types. The larger than average desk is a modern take on the author’s original using the exact measurements; each guestroom features a portion of Rafael’s Sistine Madonna, a painting that was an obsession of Dostoevsky’s and which appears in many of his novels; and a copy of you-guessed-it takes the place of the Bible.

But perhaps the most conspicuous tribute to the author may be found in the aptly named restaurant/bar Metamorfos: keep an eye out for Dostoevsky’s grandson, who has been guaranteed free drinks for life.

Reval Hotel Sonya
St. Petersburg, Russia

Owner: Linstow AS
Architecture Firm and Contractor: Adamant, St Petersburg, Russia
Interior Design Firm: Stylt Trampoli AB, Gothenburg, Sweden
Interior Design Project Team: Erik Nissen Johansen, creative director; Jenny Bornstein, architect and interior designer; Magnus Stenberg, concept developer and copywriter; Andreas Hagersjö, art director; Frida Lundberg, in charge of final art; and  Hanna Björklund, project manager
Purchasing Firm Oy Vallila Interior Ab (furnishings and conceptual accessories); Standard (permanent interiors), and Stylt Trampoli AB (decorative items in lobby)
Lighting/Engineer/Kitchen/Landscape Consultant: Adamant
Barcelona Beach Chair and Side Table: Dedon
Prince Chair: HAY
Wingback Chair: Gärsnäs
Omni Chair: Materia
Bergere Alba Capitoné Chair: Lujosa
Stools: Andy Thornton and Kartell
Seating: Andreu World, Inno, Infurn, CM Chairs Modonutti, Swedese, Steelmobil, and Moroso
Seating Upholstery: Baumann Dekor, Creations Metaphores, and Kvadrat
Tables: Eichholtz, Cappellini, Mobel, Infurn, DK Home, and Andreu World
Dining Table Laminate: Abet Laminati
Lighting: Belux, Igor Paris, Chelsom, Flos, DK Home, Zonca, Moooi, Tom Dixon, SIL, and Lucifer
Custom Mirrors Adonis Pauli
Coat Hooks/Towel Hooks/Towel Rack/  Grab Rail: Gesa
Clothing Cabinets: Sonesson
Curtains: Akustikmiljo, Kriska Décor, and Baumann Dekor
Bedding and Fabric: Carlucci di Chivasso, Baumann Dekor, and Creations Metaphores