The hotel having been established 130 years ago, has a very long history in retaining much of the spirit of architect, Togo Murano’s elegant and graceful design. The theme for this hotel’s major renovation, which began in 2018, is ‘Queen of Elegance’, including the final areas of this particular renovation is the existing indoor pool and the guest rooms on the upper floors to be integrated into a spa and spa facility. The site is located in Nanzenji area near a group of villas on the hillside east of central Kyoto, where pioneering cultural figures of the time in the Meiji era moved to as their retreat destination. Additional, Nanzenji Temple itself also boasts an elegantly Western-oriented design of the Waterway Pavilion (Suido-kaku ) built in the same era. As such the main design theme this time round has also incorporated western oriented designs as its main motif with natural landscape set as the backdrop to depict the mountain ridges seen from the slope on the site. The water from the Biwako Sosui Canal, which was drawn from this pavilion, is still partially used in the existing hotel today, making it a very familiar and unique feature to of the hotel and the new spa facility also has a semi-open-air bath that new which connected directly to the nature outside. For the renovation of the former guest room floor, where the new spa reception is located, , we focused mainly on not making the limited ceiling height to be so impactful but instead making it feel more grand in essence . The entire interior is wood-grained to evoke a sense of natural healing and of luxury. From the entrance lobby, a large staircase leads down to the lower floor, where the drinks lounge is located along with changing rooms both male and female further down the passage. The theme colors of the men’s and women’s changing rooms are separated by the seasonal colours of the maple, “tokomidori,” in green and “tokomomiji” in red respectively with polished black floor to mimic the reflection seen on the Japanese lacquered floors at Ruriko-Temple in Kyoto, where similarly seasonal changes to the foliage are indeed reflected by the lustrous floor in early summer and autumn. The interior of the hot spring baths are also boldly curved to express the elegance and beauty of nature. In the semi-open-air bath, the form of a waterway pavilion is placed on the wall, and the pond and plants outside the bath are effectively incorporated to create a space where one can feel a sense of unity with the surrounding landscape.

Ild (Integrade Lighting Design), a lighting design company, won THE LUMEN WEST AWARDS 2021, a lighting award held by IES (Illuminating Engineering Society), a lighting engineering society based in New York, USA.

THE LUMEN WEST AWARDS 2021　https://lumenwest2021.com/

ild(Integrade Lighting Design） http://www.integratedltgdesign.com/index.php

IES（Illuminating Engineering Society)  https://www.ies.org

The Kahala Hotel & Resort Yokohama by KKS Group, has been nominated for the final selection under “Event Spaces” category at the global design award, “AHEAD ASIA 2021” sponsored by the British hotel hospitality design magazine “SLEEPER”.

https://www.aheadawards.com/asia/2021/shortlist

The following works of our company were published in the web magazine TECTURE MUG.

Hotel Indigo Hakone Gora

https://mag.tecture.jp/project/20210120-hotel-indigo-hakone-gora/

CERULEAN TOWER TOKYU HOTEL Executive floor

https://mag.tecture.jp/project/20210126-cerulean-tower-tokyu-hotel/

Overall Vision and Planning
The proposed building consists of two luxury hotels, a full membership resort hotel “Yokohama Bay Court Club Hotel & Spa Resort” and a general luxury hotel “The Kahala Hotel & Resort Yokohama”.
Since 1895, Yokohama has developed as an international port city, as such the proposed new landmark hotel aims on the continuum of producing many original architecture at “Minato Mirai 21”.
In order to harmonize with the adjacent hotels and conference halls modelled on sails as their motifs, the exterior of the hotel also incorporates the natural forms of the sea, such as “waves” and “shores,” in following
The exterior wave form of the new hotel is likened to the composition of the internationally renowned Ukiyo-e, “Thirty-six Views of Tomitake Kanagawa Okinami Ura” by Hokusai Katsushika in considering its status also as an inbound hotel in Yokohama.
There are two hotels within this facility, a full membership resort hotel and a general luxury hotel. The challenge was how the two hotels with differing personalities to coexist in one building, requiring both to compliment each other in so doing.

Yokohama Baycourt Club Hotel & Spa Resort
Design concept: Nou Deco
“Nou Deco”, a coined word that means a modern interpretation of Art Deco, combines the glamorous charm of tradition of Art Deco with a contemporary aesthetic sense.
Nou deriving from the French word “Nouveau” which means new and Art Deco, a movement that was driven by the free ideas of craftsmen and artists by fusing the craftsmanship with beautiful materials, “Nou Deco” takes further the idea of incorporating modern techniques and taking a fresh interpretation on beauty, as a
key definition for its brand image.

The Kahala Hotel & Resort Yokohama
Design concept: Crystal Modern
In order to reinvent its value and era for the hotel “Kahala”, its brand symbol based on the image of “chandelier” synonymous with the tradition of Kahala Hotel in Hawaii takes a new interpretation in part of the crystals (tradition) that shines as the modern “glitter” (innovation) of ocean at Yokohama Bay.
As such the principle design is based on a polyhedron geometry that is reminiscent of a cut diamond in making, which is fused with famous “tribal Hawaiian folk pattern” resulting in a modern and elegant impression.

There have been reports of other Chinese companies and organizations doing business under the name of KKS Group or KKS.
The only corporation of KKS Group in China is KKS Dalian office.
Please be careful and note that other companies and organizations have nothing to do with KKS Group.
For inquiries in China, please contact the KKS Dalian office or Hong Kong office. Both are available in Chinese.

Contact information
KKS Dalian Office TEL: (86) 186-41132655 E-mail: mulin@kkstokyo.co.jp
KKS INTERNATIONAL CO., LTD. TEL: (86) 139-11470504 E-mail: kksint@kks.com.hk

The bathroom in the large communal bathing facility is based on the concept of “Nagisa (Water’s Edge)” from Maiko beach. The bathtub resembles a beach edge as a motif and blue from the ocean as its main colour theme with accents of yellow to express sunlight for the interior in a modern way. The external dry area includes a garden that makes use of the existing stone walls to juxtapose nature with its more modern interior. Through the corridor leading to the SPA entrance, the wall and ceiling are in blue, expressing the water surface pattern of “Nagisa”, and other walls in beige, connects to the wood grain finish of the entrance core. The changing / locker rooms are finished in wood flooring, a fresh green ceiling inspired by the colour of foliage and even the organically shaped mirrors are all in part based on nature as its motif as if going through a grove in reaching the water’s edge in spatial sequence as part of experiencing the spa facility.

Karuizawa Prince Hotel West

Karuizawa Prince Hotel West ・ Restaurant, Banquet Lobby pre-opening on July 23, 2020.

Design concept

The core area at Prince Grand Resort Karuizawa, also known as the West Area, has stood the test of time, now with the rebuilding of the old restaurant, and the establishment of a new banquet lobby to cater for the more recent demand as MICE facilities in expanding on the grand concept of “Nature Link- to be one with and to connect to Nature”, giving a new identity as an all-season resort. In addition, by reusing the large chestnut tree that once stood prominently on site, as art pieces scattered amongst the various new space provided by the expansion, remind the guests of the memory that spanned 100 years with the tree being the sole witness to the evolution of the resort and a talisman into future.

Architecture

Asama stone and larch are both indigenous to Karuizawa in Nagano prefecture and are endorsed as the main materials that connect the various terraces proposed along with the interior space to reinforce the main concept of being one with the nature and the seamless boundary between interior and exterior which is unique to the spatial quality of Karuizawa.

Interior

ALL DAY DINING LOUNGE / BAR, “Primrose”, epitomizes “Karuizawa’s four seasons” in subtleties using different colours and tying the sub-themes from expressing Spring, Summer to Autumn and Winter in unity under one large roof.  The partitions of re-assembled timber and colored stained glass gently divide the rather large space into cozy yet comfortable niches, giving them a human-scale where you can feel nature in each area.

On the other hand, the large Aji (natural) stone used for the show kitchen at the Chinese restaurant and the imported art pieces of Chinese embroidery of flowers at “Momo Lee” embodies the sub-theme of “The plateau of Karuizawa”, expressing both the strength of the earth, at the same time the petiteness of the wild flower that blooms for guests to remember the charms of Kuruizawa as a destination to be in.

THE BARRACKS HOTEL SENTOSA won the Singapore Good Design Award 2020 in the Interior Design category.
The Singapore Good Design Award is a partner of the Good Design Award in Japan.
Founded in 2013, the first “Singapore Good Design Mark” (SG Mark) was held in 2014, and experts from Japan also participated in the judging.

Owner: Far East Organization
Main Designer: Hidemi Kanda

Design Concept

Two blocks of former military barracks on Singapore’s Sentosa island have been carefully restored and transformed into a heritage hotel. Much of the original structure and architectural elements – including arches and keystone, column capital and base, balustrade, windows and doors – were kept intact through careful repair.

Warm sepia tones and hand-finished details provide a touch of romance and timelessness

Details below
https://sgmark.org/project-description/?id=203

Design Concept
Dining amongst the luscious greenery of a fresh fruit garden. The name “LIN-KA” comes from the theme of orchard, which can be felt going through the entrance Gazebo and experience the transparent layers of colours offered by the garden scenery.
It also breaks away from the more stately conventional image of a Chinese Restaurant with island stations to freely serve and ink paintings expressed in aluminum that are scattered to become part of the entertainment to be enjoyed, in re-interpreting its own traditions.