A Raw Reflection
Setting the scene. According to the Director of IF Architecture, Iva Foschia, that was what their redesign of Melbourne’s world-renowned restaurant Attica was all about. Evocative, emotional and thought provoking were their creative watchwords – and it shows. Breaking away from common instincts and diving into a more conceptual approach, the design is an exploration of cooking’s most important element: fire and its ability to transform.
The Australian landscape is as prominent in the interior as it is in the food on the menu. Coppery grey drapes streaked with shimmering thread, lampshades of beaten brass, granular grey-flecked Castlemaine granite table tops and textured black carpet reflect the charred and ashen landscape after a regenerative eucalypt forest burn. In turn, signs of renewal are highlighted though slabs of raw timber for the benches, with the same tones mirrored by the baskets of native hand-woven grass cradling healing bunya bunya seeds placed on each table. Downlights pick up the earthy qualities throughout the design, accentuating smoky greys and hints of sharp red but, most importantly, softly illuminating the small tables on which guests will complete their experience. All in all the feeling cast upon the space is one of reverence. Almost as if you’re sitting in the eye of a storm – all is quiet, but all is yet to come. A masterpiece.
