Dana Kalczak, vice president design, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, says brand loyalists crave the sanctuary of their rooms but return for the spontaneous social interaction. The Four Seasons Montreal should not disappoint (read HOTELS main story here).
From the ground-level entrance, visitors ascend to the third story where, like a precious gem, a Russian crab from French taxidermist Deyrolle is encased in a glass display with two-way mirrors that create an illusion of infinite reflections.
Contributed by Alicia Sheber
A direct connection to the men’s shoe department of luxury department store Holt Renfrew Ogilvy lures shoppers to cross the “psychological threshold,” as it’s termed by Zébulon Perron, whose Montreal-based Atelier Zébulon Perron designed the hotel’s lobby and F&B interiors, and immerse themselves in the “Social Square.”
“The Social Square’s F&B spaces are central to the Four Seasons Montreal experience,” Perron said, “and encourage city dwellers to mingle with travelers.”
Fluid shapes of furniture and walls encourage guests to be intuitively drawn from one space to another. Perron’s attention to social ergonomics drives the energetic flow between the Social Square’s four zones.
“We design layouts to bring people closer together and spark interaction,” he said. “I close my eyes and imagine myself in each seat, thinking ‘Where am I? What am I seeing? What do I want to see?’ I try to make the worst place in the house the best.” His goal is to give every area a purpose that adapts to different activities throughout the day.
Each zone offers a different world. The lounge is bright and airy by day, with an undulating velvet bench that, devoid of legs, appears to float. Prismatic crystal panels along the glazed façade cast spangles of light with dramatic effect at night. An aerodynamic white bench along a gradated turquoise acoustic wall hints at the nautical theme of the Social Square’s star attraction, chef Marcus Samuelsson’s eponymous restaurant.
