The centerpiece of the project for the 200-foot-long lobby at the storied Florida property is a hand-tufted carpet that was woven in one piece by a team of 35 weavers and measures 161 feet long and 25 feet wide, with a weight of 1,500 pounds. The carpet and other furnishings preserve the aesthetic created when the lobby’s vaulted ceiling was hand-painted by 75 Italian artisans in 1926.
The Breakers resort in Palm Beach, Fla. has refreshed its 200-foot-long lobby, Hotel Management reported. In the refurbishment, the lobby’s historical aesthetic was preserved, including the vaulted ceiling with intricately hand-painted details that were created in 1926, when the hotel was last rebuilt.
The centerpiece of the project is a new, custom-designed, hand-tufted carpet inspired by the paintings of French Symbolist Odilon Redon. Conceived by Tihany Design (working as design consultant to Peacock + Lewis Architects), the carpet’s botanical motif evokes a garden, Hotel Management reported.
Produced by Sacco Carpet, the bespoke creation involved an intricate process, Hotel Management reported. The carpet was woven in one piece by 35 weavers on the loom, using New Zealand yarn in 70 unique colors. It measures 161 feet in length, is 25 feet wide and weighs 1,500 pounds.
The new lobby furniture, a collection of sofas, lounge chairs and tables, reflects a modern design scheme, with vibrant hues drawn from the carpet, as well as dark wood and brass detailing, Hotel Management reported. A mix of signature pieces include bronze consoles with polished African St. Laurant marble situated behind each sofa; bronze and glass coffee and cocktail tables; upholstered lounge chairs echoing the carpet’s shades of blue and green; and a dark burl wood and marble credenza with hammered bronze.
In addition, the resort’s floral display is re-created weekly by The Breakers’ in-house Design Studio, to complement the blossoming burst of carpet on the floor below.
The Breakers was established by founder Henry M. Flagler, the American industrialist who started the trend of grand, properties on Palm Beach island. His first was The Royal Poinciana, and two years later, in 1896, Flagler debuted the premier oceanfront hotel, which delighted guests with its proximity to the water and unique location—right at “the breakers,” where the waves crashed and sprayed.
After fires in both 1903 and 1925, the hotel reemerged with more opulence each time. The second reconstruction of The Breakers was awarded to New York City-based designers Shultze and Weaver, who would later create many of Manhattan’s most coveted hotels, including the Pierre, the Sherry-Netherland and Park Avenue’s Waldorf Astoria.
The Breakers reopened in 1926, modeled after the magnificent Villa Medici in Rome, to usher in a higher degree of European influence and architectural flair. Seventy-five artisans brought in from Italy completed the intricate paintings detailed across the ceilings of the 200-foot-long main lobby and first-floor public rooms, which remain on display today.
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