Salon Sacher | BWM Designers & Architects

BWM Architekten have tastefully inserted elements from the 1920s and 1950s into the newly designed Salon Sacher and have created a cohesive unit that marries the past and the present.

Following the redesign of the Sacher Eck at the end of 2017, BWM Architekten have now also redesigned the former Sacher Stube, now known as the Salon Sacher. The black and coral colour scheme and the 1920s and 1950s elements congenially complement one other. Arched globe lights highlight the bar’s role as a centrepiece, and tinted mirrors, black lines and metallic effects perfectly round off the overall look. The preserved stucco ceiling is an absolute eyecatcher: Previously hidden behind the dropped ceiling, this historic jewel was discovered in the course of the construction work. A large section of it is now displayed in all its splendour.

Space for history
Original elements form the main part of BWM Architekten’s concept for the redesign of the Salon Sacher in Vienna’s venerable Hotel Sacher. The eye is immediately drawn to the historical stucco ceiling dating back to the time the building was built. Previously hidden behind the dropped ceiling, it is now accentuated by means of a generous opening in the 5m-high ceiling. The tent-like structure of the room dissolves the usual spatial boundaries, creating an impression of surprising vastness …

The central theme is also consistently reflected in the furnishings. The original Thonet chairs have been restored and reupholstered; the tables have partly been left in their original state, keeping their brass bases while being furnished with new stone tabletops.

Coral-coloured redesign
Coral-red accents add a fresh note and pay tribute to the era in which the former Sacher Stube originated. “Combining black with light colours and shiny effects is typical for the 1920s, but also for the 1950s, which have much in common with the 20s,” BWM architect Erich Bernard explains. “The light colours that were popular at that time – besides the classic Art Deco creme colour – included pink, peach and coral, which has something of an exotic connotation as well. For us, coral red is also a modified form of the characteristic Sacher red, transported into today’s world.”

Black provides contrast
“Understated elegance in black and white in combination with rounded shapes, longitudinal oval mirror elements and eccentric pedestal lamps at the bar are the other main ingredients of the design concept,” says BWM project manager Aleš Košak. The geometric lines and black-and-white pattern of the floor are inspired by a sketch by the famous architect Josef Hoffmann, who was also the co-founder of the Wiener Werkstätte. Black is also the colour of the vertical trim-edges on the walls and ceiling and the wainscot panelling. Together, all these elements create a contrast to the lightness of the coral-coloured upholstery.

Crowning element for the centrally positioned bar
The dominant element of the interior design is the new, oval bar with a surface consisting of a stone slab set in brass and sides clad with bronze-coloured, facetted mirror strips – all emphasised by arched globe lights designed by the Viennese designer Megumi Ito. The crowning glory is the historical stucco ceiling tantalisingly peeking out of the oval opening; a neon border draws all eyes to it.

Down to the last detail …
A central, coral-red settee divides the room into the bar area on the one hand, and the café zone with classic coffee house furnishings and black chairs on the other. The salon provides seating for 40 guests and is slightly larger than its predecessor.

Successful collaboration – in 2017 BWM redesigned the Sacher Eck
The Salon Sacher is not the first collaboration between BWM Architekten and Sacher. In 2017 the Vienna-based architecture firm already redesigned the Sacher Eck in the iconic Hotel Sacher. BWM Architekten based their redesign on traditional, imperial Viennese interiors, of which the iconic Hotel Sacher is a prime example. The combination of the classic Sacher colours – wine-red, gold and black – and the typical Viennese materials of velvet, brass, dark wood and black and white marble created a new identity. By extending the café and confectionery and breaking through the ceiling to the mezzanine, BWM skilfully drew attention to striking design elements such as the monumental chandelier. In addition to the confectionery, where the original Sacher products can be purchased, there is now also an additional spacious café area on the bel étage with a view of Kärntner Strasse and the Vienna State Opera.

The design of the café’s bathroom, located in a small annex with a ceiling height of 5½ m, is an amplification of the approaches applied in the elegant salon. Decorative wallpaper and large tinted mirrors create an illusionistic interior.