Lot 494
TOM DIXON (B. 1959) §
ZINC BAR FRONT, CONTEMPORARY
Auction: 11 November 2015 at 11:00 GMT
Description
comprised of ten faceted panels
Dimensions
each panel 102cm long, 99cm high
Footnote
Note: Exclusive commission for the Paramount Bar, Centre Point, London.
Opened in 2008 the Paramount bar, restaurant and club, was situated on three floors at the top floor of Centre Point, the iconic and controversial London skyscraper at the end of Oxford Street in London. The club interiors, a blend 60s retro and futurism, are articulated through the use of hard-edged materials like concrete, stone and steel, and were designed by Design Research Studio with renowned Industrial designer Tom Dixon as the Creative Director. Bespoke furniture alongside vintage pieces were chosen to reflect the modernism of the building, designed by R. Seifert and Partners between 1961 and 1966. Originally Centre Point was built as speculative office space, however the 398-foot tower stood empty from its completion until 1975.
Dixon commented that the project was "a dream job...a building so iconic and so mysterious that has been argued and discussed and reviled and now celebrated and we get an opportunity to design a space that all Londoners know, but almost none have visited."
Visitors to the bar and restaurant were greeted on the ground floor with its original 1960s monochrome terrazzo flooring and a Barbara Hepworth inspired copper reception desk designed for the space. Guests were then whisked up to the 31st floor events space, with its 10 meter-long zinc bar facing the west side (and, of course, London sunsets). One level up, on the 32nd floor, was the main hub of the members' club, featuring a bespoke Tom Dixon copper bar, dining and lounging areas, separated by a sculptural steel screen. The Viewing Gallery on the 33rd floor is the summit of the building was the members' Champagne and Cocktail Bar, which curled around the circumference, the floor to ceiling glazing offering a remarkable 360 degree view of the city below.