Virgin Atlantic recently unveiled a rather glorious new Clubhouse lounge at Los Angeles International Airport, which set them back a cool £2.5 million. The project was undertaken alongside the US practice Slade Architecture, with local and London-based artists also hired to create bespoke pieces for the luxury lounge, and a selection of furniture from the likes of the famous Californian Eames brothers, which reflects the history of the city. The lounge is being seen as a celebration of the airlines London to LA route, which has been running now for 25 years.
Virgin Atlantic recently unveiled a rather glorious new Clubhouse lounge at LAX Airport
Surprisingly, aside from a telltale copper Virgin Atlantic sign glimpsed before entering the reception area, the space is entirely unbranded. A neutral reception area has been designed to provide a brief respite from the notoriously busy airport. It gives way to a vast main lounge, where an unbroken “Flow Wall” is set against stunning views of LAX’s Theme Building, The Hollywood Hills and the Hollywood sign. Virgin Atlantic senior designer Jeremy Brown, has said the lounge has been built with a “Cohesive service design,” which means the Virgin brand is expressed at every touchpoint of the customer journey “From the first click or making a phone call, through to the airport experience, getting on board and disembarkation.” It's all very subtle and subliminal though, with only the staff giving away the typical hints of Virgin red.
The challenge of the LA lounge for Slade, was to reference its locality whilst also feeling an organic part of the Virgin brand. Brown says the team looked to engender the lounge with the spirit of LA at every opportunity, with the food and service reflecting the healthy living outdoor lifestyle of the city. Other themes referenced by the designer are “Warm sunshine hues, unapologetic white spaces, and a fondness for natural offerings.” It all sounds very wishy washy, but then that is LA for you!
The project was undertaken alongside the US practice Slade Architecture
The Flow Wall forms the east side of the triangular lounge, and ends at a series of sofas and tables designed to resemble the rolling hills of the LA landscape. Elegant Swan chairs by Arne Jacobsen complete the look. Integrated into the wall is a copper lined bar furnished with native Californian plants and stocked with local produce. This is offset by Walter Knoll Turtle chairs and a surfboard-inspired counter by the windows, made up of a layered bamboo plinth supporting a Corian table top. These designs also takes cues from such stereotypical LA touch-points as skateboards, boat hulls and polished beach stones.
An immersive piece by the digital artist Diana Reichenbach sits at the heart of the lounge. Reichenbach has said that in her work, she likes to communicate personal introspective moments in an attempt to capture the viewer’s attention. For this commission, she wanted to “Engage Clubhouse viewers in the beautiful setting of Los Angeles through shifting lights, subtle movement and vivid colour.” In her own words, she “Focused on isolated moments that encapsulate the experience of the city, the landscape and the environment in the area.”
An immersive piece by the digital artist Diana Reichenbach sits at the heart of the lounge
Reichenbach’s digital piece, which used colours that compliment the rest of the lounge, is repeated indefinitely on a half-hour loop. Virgin designer Emma Lally helped steer Reichenbach’s design so that it felt at home with the Virgin brand and fitted into the context of the space. British artist Vic Lee has also created a hand-drawn mural for the lounge, which he calls “LOLA: To London with love Los Angeles.” Lee, who spent time in LA for the project, which took him almost five days to complete, said he immersed himself in LA culture to help find the right tone for the piece. The tattoo-style creation is a bold and defiantly urban piece, which Lee created using graffiti pens, black ink and acrylic paint.
Slade founder and namesake James Slade, adds that the collaborative relationship between his firm and Virgin, allowed them “Room to explore and develop unconventional concepts and applications.” He said: “Virgin has a much broader, more sophisticated understanding of its brand than some other airlines. Some parts are tangible and some parts you experience. They know how space feels. You don’t notice logos anywhere or red, apart from the uniform. They understand that their brand is not a logo and colour but an experience and that gives us a tremendous amount of freedom.” The use of colour and “Feel” over blatant branding really helps lend the lounge a singular look, but it still feels like it belongs to something bigger.
