GRAND PACIFIC HOTEL

584-618 Victoria Parade, Suva, Fiji

Visited: 10th August 2014

Design: Well it was a nice change to finally get out of the resort and see some of the countryside and the nearby islands. We have been exploring the cultural riches of the island and today made our way down to the capital, Suva. Only to realise that everything was closed and most people were at church. However, in our search for lunch we came across the beautifully restored Grand Pacific Hotel. Built by the Union Steam Ship Company in 1914 for their passengers travelling the Transpacific route, the rooms were made to look identical to the first-class staterooms onboard the cruise ships. Queen Elizabeth II and Charles Kingsford Smith were just some of the guests that have stayed here. This year being the 100 year anniversary, a Government run investment group brought the 'Grand Old Lady' back to life. To see the images of it back in 2010 and earlier of it run down and weather beaten and to see it fully restored to its former glory with contemporary touches throughout was amazing. The whole building screamed,'White British Colonialist' with its pompous grandeur and Titanic interior decor. I always find these buildings beautiful, but find they feel awkward and out of place on Continents or Islands that are outside of the UK. There is a pretentious air that permeates you as you wander the grounds. Apart from that, an amazing job had been done and it felt like it had been built yesterday. The reception door was outstanding with concierge and bell boys dressed like characters from a Wes Anderson film. You are instantly transported to another era once you enter the foyer. I found the white double doors with the French windows, accompanied by the two palms, marine pendant lights and the soft grey walls complemented each other a perfectly. The brass handles were divine on the hands and there was an effortless push on the open.

Door resistance: 2

Closure mechanism: Manual

Draft: Medium

Squeak level: 0

LAGOON TERRACE RESTAURANT 

Shangri La Fijian Resort & Spa, Fiji

Visited: 9th August 2014

Design: Nothing screams a family restaurant (kids welcome) at a resort than a marquee plastic door entrance. The non-slip red safety mats over the polished floors so the kids don't run slip, do give that Cannes film festival feel. Except, when you have a bright yellow CAUTION / SAFETY FIRST sign in the middle of the entrance warning people, it kind of takes the glamour away. Plus the two hundred screaming families inside politely fighting over the endless breakfast buffet didn't help either. It's funny because they have used the same menu display stand as the rest of the restaurants, the welcome desk is done in the same mahogany stained wood as the others, the lamp shades were actually quite a nice design and yet as soon as you stick a marquee over the entrance, the whole essence of a tropical island goes from exotic Pacific holiday, to N.S.W. Bachelor and Spinsters Ball. 

Door resistance: 0

Closure mechanism: Never closed except in cyclones.

Draft: Maximum

Squeak level: 0

Change return time: 33 secs

GOLDEN COWRIE RESTAURANT 

Shangri La Fijian Resort & Spa, Fiji

Visited: 7th August 2014

Design: Stepping up a little in quality, I came across the beautiful craftsmanship of these carved doors of the Golden Cowrie Restaurant. Also located in the Shangri La, these doors I believe were hand crafted by local Fijian couple, Wea and Maika Cakacaka who did a number of the main doors located throughout the resort. From entering a long passageway you are greeted by these two magnificent hand crafted doors. Stained to a dark rich mahogany red the vertical beams of each door panel emphasize the height giving them a sense of grandeur. There is a clever yet simple S-bend design formed at the top and bottom that not only strengthens the design, but also creates a wonderful tribal pattern. The centre of each door is elegantly decorated with two framed carvings from Wea and Maika depicting the sun, a hut and two village boats on black stained wood. I know with tribal tools and weapons they would bury the wood in the mangrove mud for a number of weeks, this in turn would stain the wood a deep black. I wasn't able to find out if this process was applied to these carvings or whether they were just stained by hand. The effect was still visually striking. The whole time I was at the resort I never once saw these doors closed, I did however manage to give them a push and pull to get an idea of their weight. There was a nice resistance to their swing where I had to use my whole body to get them moving. They were functionally perfect for this climate being rigidly secure when closed and yet they still allowed the sea breeze to flow through easily. The old fishing pots over the lights ran the full length of the passage adding to the Golden Cowrie nautical theme. You are presented with some cowrie artworks, stone tiles and a couple of inoffensive menu boards upon arrival. A little mystery is created as you don't get a full view of the interior until you are around the corner. I found the colours worked well together and with the foliage decorating the left side on the walk up, you are instantly taken to paradise.   

Door resistance: 3.5

Closure mechanism: Manual

Draft: Maximum

Squeak level: 0

Change return time: 1.22 min

TAKALI TERRACE RESTAURANT

Shangri La Fijian Resort & Spa, Fiji

Visited: 5th August 2014

I'm back and what a week it was. Eight days in paradise sampling some amazing food and getting to test out some tropical doors. Let's just say there were some interesting doors this time round, from high-end refined right down to a family business just trying to get by without their window being smashed.    

Design: Let's begin with the Takali Terrace located at the lovely Shangri La Resort where I had the pleasure of spending a week. Once again, the tropics and its beautiful climate made it hard to find actual doors to review. When you have amazing weather all year round who needs doors or walls. In the end it becomes more about the entrance than the door itself. 

Supported by four solid natural timber tree trunks, the roof of the entrance sits rigidly on its foundations. I found the trunks projected a tribal strength, an almost raw heroic welcome similar to a Roman pillar. With its freehand font in black surrounded by cartoonish tribal objects, the sign worked well to entice the wandering, hungry white tourists ready for that authentic western styled food that only resorts in other countries can provide. The band of cross-hatched wooden framing around the roof combined with the two blue pots filled with bamboo, helped to unify the tropical essence. It gave one the feeling of walking into a local chiefs ceremonial hall at Movie World on the Gold Coast. I found this entrance simple in its design, and soft on the eye. It was contemporary, symmetrical and not too over the top with island kitsch to turn you off. I think it needed a little more as the the bamboo just looked like someone had thrown it in the pots, put up a couple of menu displays and went, "that'll do". Yet the simplicity seemed to work as well. The placement of the round maitre d desk at the top of the stairs was a nice focal point as you arrived with a glimpse of the restaurant in the background. I must admit there was a certain romance about this entrance at night, however in the day time it lost everything. Without the warmth of the night lights framing it in the dark, during the day, it just looked like a middle aged divorcee coming out of a nightclub at 8am in the morning after a full night out on Barcardi Breezers. 

Door resistance: 0

Closure mechanism: Never closed

Draft: Maximum

Squeak level: 0

Change return time: 2.05 min

BULA BULA I'm on island time

                                                                               Image courtesy of Fiji Tourism Bureau


In the next week I will be heading over to the lovely island of FIJI to review some incredible doors of the South Pacific.

Last year I had the pleasure of visiting the island of Vanuatu and reviewed some amazing doors. I'm really looking forward to seeing what the heart of the South Pacific has to offer.

Stay tuned.

THE LUI BAR - VUE DE MONDE 

Shop 55/525 Collins St, Melbourne

Visited: 24th July 2014

Design: I have reviewed so many styles of door since I began this blog, this is was definitely an experience. Upon entering the building I noticed a reception desk with a sign for Vue De Monde. At first I thought this was just to help you find the way. Only later did I discover this was "the" reception desk for Vue De Monde. This is the first door I have had to go to a reception desk and get them to escort me to the door as they were the only ones able to activate the lift. Led into a marble foyer, I was taken to the personal and private Vue De Monde elevator. This would have to be the longest entry through a door ever, in fact 236.07 metres or 55 stories high. It is the most surreal experience to enter a door, ground floor, stand in this black Matrix-like box, accelerate at a decent speed up 55 stories in a matter of seconds and feel your ears pop from the pressure on the way up. As the doors opened, I was greeted by a friendly staff member who could of stepped out of the 1920's with his magnificent moustache and debonaire attire who took me across to my seat by the window. What a view. 10 out 10 for entrances. That makes walking through a door one hell of an experience.      

It was strange as I was currently reading H.G. WELLS' novel, The Time Machine when I reviewed the door. I find there is always a sense of being transported somewhere magical when one steps into a lift. To leave a corporate foyer and emerge into this contemporary bar high above Melbourne after a few seconds, still astounds me that we can do that and it is safe. Philosophically, the idea of entering a door, only to come back through that door in order to enter a building is something to ponder as well.   

Door resistance: 0.2

Closure mechanism: Automated doors

Draft: Minimal

Squeak level: 0

Change return time: 20 sec

SUPERNORMAL

180 Flinders Lane, Melbourne

Visited: 19th July 2014

Design: In 2006, Jasper Morrison and Naoto Fukasawa put together an exhibition of 204 everyday objects that they considered 'Super Normal design'. 

A book accompanied the exhibition: SUPER NORMAL - Sensations of the Ordinary. 

In an essay by Jasper Morrison, he describes a set of hand-blown wine glasses he found having an, "atmospheric spirit" that gives the object a, "mysterious and elusive quality."

http://www.jaspermorrison.com/html/8851725.html  

This door is a masterpiece, to take a basic glass panel door and to infuse it with what appears to be a distorted and gnarled tree branch referencing bonsai on the exterior handle, only then to mirror this form through what I think was carved stone on the interior handle, is Zen at its finest. I really hope it was stone and not some resin cast made to look like stone. This is what I believe Naoto Fukasawa refers to as Super Normal. Here the designers have taken a simple door to a restaurant and simplified it and refined it by using wood, stone, glass and steel to give it an atmospheric spirit and what Jasper Morrison describes as having a, "mysterious and elusive quality." The thing is, I can't put my finger on it. It is so simple and yet so beautiful at the same time. The feeling of the handles and their contrast to each other, the weight of the door combined with the effortless ease at which it moves for such a large door, creates a perpetual sense of wonder and fascination. It was almost like that scene from Planet of the Apes on the beach where they come across the Statue of Liberty. There is something about the primitive natural elements of the handles combined with the highly precise, man made manufactured glass door that form an ethereal union. The bright neon red glow of the SUPERNORMAL sign is echoed in the reflection on the stainless steel framing of the window beams. Purples, yellows and hints of blue intermingle to create a dance of light on the panels. Upon entering you are presented with a combination of polished concrete, besser blocks and blonde wood alongside a mesh of soft and harsh neon and fluorescent lighting that meld together to form a unique first impression. It's modern, it's sleek, it feels Asian, it felt out of this world, almost beyond its time. To me, this is the Ikebana of door design. True mastery.   

Door resistance: 3.5

Closure mechanism: Hidden pivot

Draft: Minimal

Squeak level: 0

Change return time: 39 sec