First look: Honolulu's Victoria Place blends cosmopolitan living with Hawaii life and nature
Victoria Place is a new residential tower at Honolulu's Ward Village; take a first look at its interiors
Part of Honolulu's Ward Village development, Victoria Place has just unveiled its new spaces – a series of high-end communal areas in the brand-new residential tower in the capital of Hawaii. Designed by architecture studio Solomon Cordwell Buenz (SCB) with interiors by Tihany Design and landscape architecture by VITA, the project looks sleek and contemporary; as you step inside, its influences from the Pacific Island's life and nature become apparent.
Get a taste of Victoria Place in Honolulu's Ward Village
The planned neighbourhood of Ward Village aims to offer a mix of scales and densities, as well as green, open spaces to its future residents. Located on Ala Moana Boulevard, Victoria Place is next to Kewalo Harbor and the new Victoria Ward Park, a 3.5-acre public green space set to open in January 2025.
Integrating the indoors and outdoors and feeding off the lush island's land and atmosphere was important for the design team. Natural materials and large openings bring a taste of the outside in at every turn.
'The design of Victoria Place is meant to engage all the senses,' said Alessia Genova, owner and principal, Tihany Design. 'You feel the connection to the land through the materials, sense the lightness in the open layouts, hear the soft rhythm of water, and experience the textures that evoke both nature and sophistication. It’s a design that isn’t just seen but fully experienced.'
'Our material choices, from walnut wood to basalt stone, create an organic modern palette that feels intrinsically connected to Hawaii,' adds Genova. 'Each material was selected not just for beauty, but for how it engages the senses – the warmth of wood, the coolness of stone, the resilience of oil-rubbed bronze against the sea air. These materials anchor the design to the land and climate, making it both grounded and timeless.'
Victoria Place features 40 storeys and 350 new homes within them. Amenities include three pools, a spa, multiple tropical gardens, a wine room and a pool house for private events. Restrained architectural language and material choices ensure the design feels contextual – in the wider environment of the island's leafy nature and Hawaii's modernist architecture legacy.
'Our design of Victoria Place fully embraces the environment through the seamless integration with the outdoors, maximising the views and celebrating local plants and flowers,' says Ben Wrigley, principal at SCB. 'Envisioning Victoria Place as a reflection of the natural landscape, much like a gallery serves and complements great art, the architecture emphasizes an understated and natural approach that showcases and honours the connection to the land.'
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
Paris Fashion Week Men’s A/W 2025 highlights: Auralee to Louis Vuitton
Paris Fashion Week Men’s A/W 2025 began yesterday with Pharrell Williams’ celebration of a ‘friendship for life’ with streetwear legend Nigo. Reporting from Paris, Wallpaper* fashion features editor Jack Moss picks the best of the week, as it unfolds
By Jack Moss Published
-
We zoom in on Ontario Place, Toronto’s lake-defying 1971 modernist showpiece
We look back at Ontario Place, Toronto’s striking 1971 showpiece and modernist marvel with an uncertain future
By Dave LeBlanc Published
-
‘It is a collaborative adventure, not a service provision’: Ilse Crawford on design as a tool for advancement and enhancement
Designer Ilse Crawford, founder of Studio Ilse and a revered shapeshifter in the industry, reflects on design in 2025 and finds cause for optimism
By Ilse Crawford Published
-
Reflections from Los Angeles: a local writer's personal account of the LA fires
Architecture writer and local resident Michael Webb reflects on the devastating 2025 Los Angeles fires and offers his personal account of the events of the last two weeks in California
By Michael Webb Published
-
LA Mayor Karen Bass outlines her plan for rebuilding the city
Following the devastating LA wildfires, which have destroyed more than 12,000 structures, the city’s mayor has outlined her plan for reconstruction
By Anna Solomon Published
-
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Weisblat House, a Usonian modernist Michigan gem, could be yours
Frank Lloyd Wright’s Weisblat House in Michigan is on the market – a chance to peek inside the heritage modernist home in the countryside
By Audrey Henderson Published
-
Cabin House is a simple modernist retreat in the woods of North Carolina
Designed for downsizing clients, Cabin House is a modest two-bedroom home that makes the most of its sylvan surroundings
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
A Texas ranch house blends Californian charm and Asian minimalism in a 'balance in hybridity'
Pontious, a Texas ranch house designed by OWIU, is a home grounded in its owner's cultural identity, uniting Californian, Chinese and Japanese roots
By Tianna Williams Published
-
The three lives of the Edith Farnsworth House: now, a modernist architecture icon open to all
The modernist Edith Farnsworth House has had three lives since its conception in 1951 by Mies van der Rohe; the latest is a sensitive renovation, and it's open to the public
By Audrey Henderson Published
-
Year in review: the top 12 houses of 2024, picked by architecture director Ellie Stathaki
The top 12 houses of 2024 comprise our finest and most read residential posts of the year, compiled by Wallpaper* architecture & environment director Ellie Stathaki
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
A vacant Tribeca penthouse is transformed into a bright, contemporary eyrie
A Tribeca penthouse is elevated by Peterson Rich Office, who redesigned it by adding a sculptural staircase and openings to the large terrace
By Léa Teuscher Published