OMA has just finalized Potato Head Studios, a hotel, first of its kind, dedicated to both guests and the local community. Located in Seminyak, Bali, the building’s design, led by David Gianotten and project architect Ken Fung, opens the ground floor for public cultural events and activities.
The Potato Head Studios, alongside Katamama and the Beach Club, form the Desa Potato Head. Inspired by the local context and the Indonesian natural surroundings, the project features traditional components from the country’s architectonic elements. In fact, “the open platform at the ground level and a private garden on the second level evoke the raised courtyards in Indonesia, and traditional Balinese courtyards found at the ground level”. The liberated ground will host curated cultural events and daily leisure activities, committed to bringing the community together in this distinctive space.
The essence of Bali lies in interaction between different cultures. Our design for the Potato Head Studios offers both private guestrooms and facilities, and public spaces to encourage exchange between different kinds of users. It challenges the typical Balinese resort typology that highlights exclusivity -- David Gianotten, Managing Partner – Architect.
With the engagement of local design consultant Andra Matin, Indonesian craftsmen created the textures on some concrete walls. Inspired by Balinese Tika, the architects imagined a reinterpretation of the divination calendar on the façade of the guestroom corridors.
The open platform, leading to the beach includes “a floating ring lifted by pilotis [that] accommodates the private guestrooms and other functions, including an exhibition space and a sunset bar”. Actually, the open cultural ground plane, flexible place of gathering, is a stage that can host a range of programs, such as festival celebrations, cultural events, and day-to-day leisure activities that welcomes everyone to experience Balinese contemporary culture. Even the roof is accessible by the public, hosting a sculptural open park reachable through a path that connects amenity spaces including restaurants, pools, and spas.
At Desa Potato Head we’re not trying to change the industry, we want to create an entirely new model for it. If we bring people together for good times, but offer them the unexpected, it will open their minds in new ways. OMA is known for building public spaces, like museums and institutions, and that was our idea for the Desa: to create a type of cultural institution that mixes public with private, guests with locals, and future thinking with time-honored craftsmanship. -- Potato Head founder Ronald Akili.
