Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers

Located on the border between the neighbourhoods of Montorgueil and Le Haut Marais, the Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers is the latest hotel from Clé Group, which also owns the Hôtel Bachaumont. This new establishment makes a bold statement with its timeless design, and offers a new way to experience the Parisian lifestyle. By choosing a location next to the Centre National des Arts & Métiers, the Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers aims to pay tribute to that century-old institution devoted to engineering and the teaching of manufacturing techniques. Raphael Navot, the designer in charge of the project’s artistic direction, thus took the bold step of complementing the building’s historic character with an innovative design and exceptional craft expertise. This daring combination has created a hotel without precedent, where the work with materials and shapes is highlighted in each of the spaces. The building’s seven floors thus house some 70 rooms of various types, each one unique: with or without a terrace, overlooking the street outside or the patio, but above all boasting finishing touches - and dimensions - worthy of a bespoke Parisian apartment.

On the ground floor is a range of places to eat and drink (restaurant, bars and a cicchetteria), open to guests as well as the public, and offering a gastronomic menu where Italian cuisine meets creative mixology, and party vibes meet well-being without going over the top. Overlooking a tree-lined square with a village feel, the hotel is designed to blend in with the cityscape of the neighbourhood, with a large terrace that offers an ideal place to catch some rays as soon as the sun comes out. Reflecting the hotel’s commitment to sustainable development, an ecological policy covering the products and consumables provided for guests, and processes ranging from recycling to utilities management, was put in place at the outset in order to ensure that this initiative would be built into the project’s DNA.

The Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers also stands out from the crowd when it comes to the food and drink on offer, harnessing the experience of an expert trio who know how to make the most of all the delights of Italian gastronomy.

The Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers has designed its rooms as places of sanctuary where comfort takes priority. A place of hospitality, where Parisian heritage meets architecture and innovation to create a sense of timeless charm. The 70 rooms at the Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers are spread across the six floors of the two Haussmannian buildings that make up the establishment. Overlooking a tree-lined square, Rue Réaumur or the establishment’s large inner courtyard, there are ten or so different room types ranging from Double Room (20 sqm) to Penthouse (100 sqm).

The hotel therefore has a wide variety of accommodation to fulfil every need or wish, with the spaces laid out in a unique way. Each room has its own configuration, and the furniture has been carefully chosen (Moroso, Tatra), so guests feel like they are staying in an individually designed, dare we say bespoke room. Overlooking a tree-lined square, Rue Réaumur or the establishment’s large inner courtyard, there are ten or so different room types ranging from Double Room (20 sqm) to Penthouse (100 sqm). The hotel therefore has a wide variety of accommodation to fulfil every need or wish, with the spaces laid out in a unique way. Each room has its own configuration, and the furniture has been carefully chosen (Moroso, Tatra), so guests feel like they are staying in an individually designed, dare we say bespoke room.

The Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers boasts a unique architectural signature based on tailor-made design combined with a consideration of function that focuses on the materials involved.

The Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers is an awe-inspiring architectural endeavour that was made possible by the combined and complementary expertise of designer Raphael Navot and architect-engineer Daniel Vaniche, head of the DVVD agency. Originally from Israel, Raphael Navot holds a degree from the Design Academy in Eindhoven (Netherlands) and now works in Paris. As an accomplished designer should be, this creative professional is just as capable of designing an object as a space, of finding usage-based solutions as matching function with emotion, and of working with the sensibility of a moment as sublimating raw materials. An expert in picking out and even imagining materials that echo unheard of situations, Raphael Navot has turned the Hôtel National des Arts & Métiers into an amazing experiment in hospitality and food service, as well as a gem of interior design.

The atmospheres in each space have been developed using carefully chosen materials that deliver a natural shade all of their own. The colours are not added on but are provided by the very essence of the material used: cut Paris stone for the lobby, oxidised copper tubes acting as cladding for the walls in La Cicchetteria, natural coatings in the corridors, terrazzo for the bathrooms, heat-blackened steel for the bookshelves, burnt wood for the bar counter… The sheets are the only white element in the whole design scheme. For here again, the furniture and the materials used have been carefully picked or even exclusively created: vintage Tatra chairs for the restaurant, timber table tops, concrete legs, washed velvet sofas, suede curtains… while every shape conveys a sense of timelessness. The décor features an impressive catalogue of contributions by the top craftspeople and creatives in their field: Oscar Ono and Cassou for the woodwork; Rue Herold for the linen, Rubelli for the velvet; Signature Murale for the wall coatings; Moroso and Sol & Luna for selected items of furniture… Or Patrimoine Pierre de Taille for the remarkable pillars in the lobby, as well as Pierre & Granite for the marble floors (lobby) and the “sculpted” staircase leading to the gallery, and Kali Vermes for her plant arrangements in all areas of the hotel. Lastly, the complexity of this layout would not have been possible without the support of the DVVD agency, which has entirely reworked the interior volumes of the two Haussmannian buildings that make up the establishment.

From the sequence of the rooms to the creation of the retractable glass roof over the patio, from managing the various craftspeople to installing the hydraulic pump that provides autonomous cooling for the air-conditioning system. All this is obviously underpinned by a genuine commitment to the principle of sustainability.