Ace Hotel, New York, USA

Built in 1904 as the Breslin Hotel, part of what would become an avenue of hotels, the property was situated in the Times Square of the turn of the century ,an area full of clubs and restaurants. Roman & Williams designed the hotel interiors. Their aesthetic mixes objects, lighting and finishes from different eras to reflect a sense of unconventionality and freedom. While the lobby is layered and historical, the rooms are more efficient. A clothes rack Roman & Williams made from bent plumbing pipes with hanging steel boxes replaces a closet, and references the neighborhood’s fashion-world history. Pipes also appear in the bath accessories and desk legs, showing how stock materials can be re-appropriated to make something elegant but simple, unfussy and ultimately anti-design.