November travel news: editor’s picks
Danish metalworker Holger Nielsen could not have imagined that the pedal-controlled bin he designed in 1939 for his wife’s hairdressing salon would eventually lead to the creation of Vipp, a fully fledged empire of home and kitchen accessories. Nor that the bin itself would end up in MoMA’s permanent design collection. And he certainly could not have imagined that the bin would be the impetus for one of the most intriguing hotel concepts we’ve seen in a long time.
In 2004, Vipp created a prototype plug and play shelter in southern Sweden on the edge of a forest lake – a fully functioning 55 square metre black-clad cabin, essentially, made of steel with felt on the interior walls and a ceramic tile floor, and furnished with Vipp hardware. The flood of requests to stay in the Shelter, as it was eventually called, was both unexpected and encouraging to the Vipp brass.
So much so that the company is launching what will be a series of one-room lodgings scattered around the world under the umbrella brand Vipp Hotel. Designed in collaboration with Danish architect, David Thulstrup, the Vipp Loft, at 400 sq metres, is considerably larger than the Vipp Shelter. Its setting, too, is markedly different – it occupies the top floor of Vipp’s Copenhagen HQ in an old paper printing factory near the harbour and Christianshavn’s canals. And as with the Shelter, the Loft is dressed almost entirely in Vipp hardware, including the slick lines of the fully equipped kitchen.
Vipp is so bullish about its pet project that it’s already hard at work with Thulstrup on a second Copenhagen property that’s due early next year, alongside its Asian debut in an as-yet undisclosed location in Taiwan, the latter a collaboration with local architect Mao Wu.
Whether a one-on-one nature experience, or an urban retreat, for Vipp, the hotels are both a chance to genuinely explore the world and a canny marketing tool. As the company puts it, its products, especially its kitchens, are made to last a lifetime, but here’s a chance to start with just a weekend.
INFORMATION
For more information visit the Vipp website
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
ADDRESS
Vipp Loft
Snorresgade 22
Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.
-
Postcard from Design Week Lagos 2024
Reporting from Nigeria’s capital during Design Week Lagos 2024, our correspondent shares his view from the streets and explores the role of design in economic evolution
By Ugonnaora Owoh Published
-
Meet the 2024 Royal Academy Dorfman Prize winner: Livyj Bereh from Ukraine
The 2024 Royal Academy Dorfman Prize winner has been crowned: congratulations to architecture collective Livyj Bereh from Ukraine, praised for its rebuilding efforts during the ongoing war in the country
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Out of office: What the Wallpaper* editors have been doing this week
The Wallpaper* editors are a busy bunch. From tingling their tastebuds in London, Speyside and Hong Kong to watching obscure Estonian animations, here's how they've been spending their time
By Charlotte Gunn Published