Exclusive cocktails at a bar, excessive partying at a club, or relaxed chilling at a lounge people need to occasionally escape from their everyday life into another world. This is made possible by the individual character and the very own atmosphere of each special location, which are strongly defined by architectural and design visions. Apart from the drinks, the music and the people, lighting and space, form and furnishing are decisive success factors for all good concepts. Nowhere else can a designed space have such a strong effect and impact. While the range of styles has grown enormously recently, this field has become one of the most exciting tasks for interior designers. This volume takes the reader on a tour of very unique bars, clubs and lounges from around the world.

What was once considered incomplete and in need of repair, is chic and hip today: in new office buildings copper pipes are no longer hidden, but are exposed and artfully displayed against the raw formwork pattern of a concrete wall with ingenious lighting. Likewise, the unplastered, cracked walls of a restaurant in a former factory building are creatively altered with translucent modern textile materials. Rough Style presents buildings and spaces by architects and interior designers who work out expressive and most rigorous design concepts. Refraining from the accustomed ideals of beauty and perfection is the new approach. The uncompromising and exciting relationship in the encounter of innovative design schemes and raw unfinished states or traces of the past opens up new esthetic horizons, creating new standards of value.

Shipping containers are the most conspicuous symbol of the globalized world economy 20 or 40 feet of pure steel reduced to the essentials. They are robust, standardized, inexpensive, universally available, and quickly assembled. Whether as single units, piled on top of each other, or placed in a row, covered or cut open contemporary architecture uses containers as extremely versatile elements for a great variety of contexts. Their aesthetic of practicality accommodates minimalistic temporary solutions, experimental design concepts, as well as highly demanding and complex building structures. The contemporary projects presented in this volume showcase the many functional and creative faces of the utilization of containers. Almost everything seems possible in the developing field of container architecture.

The concept of taking the existing material as an idea is what is behind the expression Rough Interiors. The building and rooms are taken as they are and the traces of the past are preserved in the sense of remaining visible, into which the design concept is integrated. Old shells are given a new life with the aid of very different design interventions. It is the breaks, contrasts and contradictions instead of perfect harmony and smooth surfaces which characterise these works. The interiors presented range from low — budget to luxury projects. A fascinating interplay be — tween past and present emerges in the interplay of rough ceilings, un-plastered walls and visible concrete beams together with creative re-use ideas, modern materials and innovative form language.

In the public perception as well as the privacy of the home the bath has transformed itself to a freely designed adventurous space. Peace and repose are a priority; inspirations for contemporary concepts and designs are drawn from all different kinds of bath cultures worldwide. The spa as a social trend offers balsam for the soul and for the body a sensuous break from everyday reality. The present volume, rich in information, illustrations and plan material, provides an insight into the fantastic creativity of modern bath and spa architecture by featuring more than 60 projects from around the world. The Hotel Puerta America is one of the highlights: Each floor has been designed by a different architect, including Zaha Hadid, Ron Arad and the team Javier Mariscal & Fernando Salas. In this way, baths with very individual styles have emerged — each, a masterpiece in its own right. Another gem: The new spa in the town of Bath by Grimshaw is a fascinating interplay between tradition and modernity. From private baths that encourage relaxation, to the luxury wellness temples: In this book, you can visually experience the coming together of solid and fluid elements in architecture and interior design.