House Under Magic mixes material for cosmic nostalgia at New York bar
American design studio House Under Magic has created a space that features sci-fi elements and retro influences for Oddball bar in New York City's Alphabet City neighbourhood.
Oddball uses retro elements and space-age memorabilia as scene-setting for its cocktail menu, which, in turn, influenced the design of House Under Magic, led by designer Danny Taylor.
It "blends retro-futurism, 1970s cosmic nostalgia, and late-night diner Americana", according to the team.
It takes the place of a former listening bar, a 1,100-square-foot (102-square-metre) space on the ground floor of a 1930s brick tenement building on Avenue B.
Taylor was tasked by restaurateurs Logan Rodriguez, LaTeisha Moore and Philip Reichenberger with revamping the venue, keeping only the bar form, while adding in a kitchen element for small bites in the DJ space used in the bar's former iteration.
"The defining design lane was one of 'refined playfulness,'" said Taylor.
"The use of pops of bold solid colour and geometric forms was taken from the philosophy of the Memphis Group movement – to, in the words of collector David Bowie, be 'viscerally jolted,'" he continued.
"The nostalgia for that period of design, where the exploration of imagination became luxury, serves the Oddball brand and spirit – retro forms with dreams of a hopeful future."
Taylor also mentioned that the space served as a jazz club from the late 1990s until 2021.
To achieve an eclectic, retro configuration, Taylor leaned heavily on materials, such as the burl wood that was applied to a divider element that separates the front seating area from the bar to the table tops.
New York's subways also played a part in influencing the design. A series of stacked MDF blocks with holes in them sits on top of the burl divider.
These same blocks, painted to look like cement, also feature behind the bar where they become a rack, with the holes of the MDF used to suspend a custom light, evocative of a lightsaber from the Star Wars films.
The red of the seats was echoed in the painted-on shade on the spherical pendant lights above the banquettes and front tables, with similar pendants with silver lids over the bar.
Leaning into the Memphis influence, aqua banquettes and wall details meet salsa-coloured banquettes and bar-stool cushions.
The bar top and some of the tables were topped with Formica Solid Surfacing 501 'Black Lava' to "anchor" the space.
According to Taylor, the mix of colours and materials was meant to feel "composed" but not "kiddish" and to accommodate the changes in light from night to day.
Mirrors line the walls to visually extend the space, while wire-brushed acacia flooring continues the retro reference.
Taylor is well-known for his speaker design, and has contributed elements to other New York interior schemes, such as speaker-as-shelves for PlayLab Inc's flagship for fashion brand Madhappy.
The influence of the postmodern design collective Memphis Group was also seen at another recent Downtown Manhattan restaurant opening, Funny Bar by Safwat by Safwat.
The photography is by Jeff Brown.
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