Intrepid cool-hunters have long answered the siren call of an Aman resort - their apparent inaccessibility. Since Adrian Zecha opened his first property, Amanpuri, on Phuket in 1988, a degree of remoteness has secured a certain type of high-flying guest; someone who isn't deterred by a few hours' drive beyond the nearest hub airport and relishes the discretion (mixed with a certain déjà vu) that greets the avowed Aman junkie as they arrive at its latest far-flung resort.
Cut to 2022, and the freshly capitalised Aman Resorts, now owned by property developer Vladislav Doronin, has doubled down on earlier openings in urban conurbations - Venice in 2013, Tokyo the following year - by planting the ultimate getaway plumb in the centre of Manhattan.
Sitting on the corner of 57th Street and 5th Avenue, Aman New York reproposes Zecha's secret sauce, swapping out the serenity of one form of inaccessibility for the security of another: since its opening in August, the property has largely been recognised for offering one of the costliest starting room rates in the city.
This story is from the December 2022 edition of Wallpaper.
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This story is from the December 2022 edition of Wallpaper.
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Role Models - Elmgreen & Dragset's subversive take on the classical form at Paris' Musée d'Orsay explores contemporary masculinities in a heteronormative world
As Elmgreen & Dragset, Michael Elmgreen and Ingar Dragset bring a smart subversion to their large-scale installations. Over the last three decades, they have taken a sideways look at social and political systems by recontextualising mainstream motifs: works have included a full-scale replica of a Prada boutique in the Texan desert and a vast, vertical swimming pool, now installed in Hong Kong.
Flask Force - A limited-edition perfume collaboration between two Spanish craft masters says it with flowers
Loewe and Lladró are two brands with a lot in common. They're both Spanish, they're both born out of an obsessive desire to master a particular material (Loewe with leather and Lladró with porcelain), and they're both exemplars of luxury design. So it seems fitting, then, that the two maisons have finally come together for an exceptional collaboration, launching this autumn: a limited-edition run of porcelain flask toppers for three of Loewe Perfumes' classic scents.
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Over the last decade, Bali-based studio Ibuku, headed up by designer Elora Hardy, has become a leading expert in bamboo architecture, its output encompassing everything from a traditional Sumbanese house and a yoga and meditation space to playful treehouses and a riverside café at an eco-friendly jungle retreat in Ubud. In 2021, the studio completed The Arc sports hall at the Green School in Bali (founded by Elora's father, designer John Hardy). Made from a series of arches spanning an impressive 19m, it was a pioneering feat of bamboo engineering.
Guest Editor Marcio Kogan - Marcio Kogan has been prolific since setting up his namesake studio in São Paulo in 1978 (it was renamed Studio MK27 at the turn of the century).
Marcio Kogan has been prolific since setting up his namesake studio in São Paulo in 1978 (it was renamed Studio MK27 at the turn of the century). The 72-year-old architect has since become synonymous with contemporary Brazilian chic, offering a sumptuous blend of raw, textured materials; clean geometric forms; effortless functionality; vernacular design features; and a deep knowledge and appreciation of the rich, tropical modernist architecture legacy of his home country.
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