Studio Ongarato creates locally inspired designs for new W Brisbane hotel

Design studio Studio Ongarato has created four Brisbane-inspired design narratives for W Brisbane, the first 5-star hotel to open in Queensland’s capital in more than 20 years.

Studio co-founder Fabio Ongarato says that creating immersive environmental design narratives, as at W Brisbane, is an emerging trend in the hotel and hospitality space.

“Our first narrative-led hotel was for the W Hong Kong back in 2010," Ongarato says.

"Using narrative at that time was uncommon.

"It successfully injected greater vibrancy into the brand and rewrote the rulebook for narrative-led hotel design.

"It also successfully set the tone for all the W hotels since.”

Ronnen Goren, who with Ongarato has led the studio for the past 25 years, says that Studio Ongarato’s engagement with W Brisbane represents the studio’s ability to marry creative design outcomes with commercial objectives.

It comes at a time of international expansion for Studio Ongarato, with recent projects in China, Hong Kong and the Middle East.

W Brisbane is located overlooking the Brisbane River and marks the W brand’s re-entry into Australia.

Featuring 312 rooms with views over South Bank and west towards Mount Coot-tha, as well as dining, bar, pool, spa and yoga facilities, the hotel opened in June, with others scheduled to open in Melbourne and Sydney over the next two years.

W Brisbane’s overarching theme A River Dreaming, developed by Nic Graham and Associates, pays respect to the Dreaming of the Turrbal people, which sees the river as the giver of life. A great snake making its way from the mountains through floodplains to the sea. In the serpent’s wake, a thriving and unique city has risen, one with a distinctive Australian character. 

Combining brand DNA, site context and the overarching river theme allowed Studio Ongarato to come up with four sub-narratives: Native Allure, Tropical Eden, Brisvegas and Dark Paradise.