BASILE STUDIO
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Design Inspiration

Birds and feathers, ferns, and palms; these are just a few of the patterns and textures driving the inspiration for our upcoming project. The location for this new age restaurant will be nested in a mid-century modern, light filled building just a couple blocks from the ocean. The atmosphere here will be nothing shy of alluring. That goes for every square inch of the space.

 
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Our client came to us with a name inspired by a genus of birds found in Papua New Guinea; we want to take that tropical atmosphere and translate it into something that feels appropriate for our community, Bird Rock. And so, our own little paradise is right on the horizon.

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Digital Architecture

When I was studying architecture in school, I pursued a forward-thinking concentration in “Digital Architecture and Fabrication” and wrote a thesis on interactive architecture. When I started working, I realized that most designers today aren’t thinking about the future or how to enhance the way people experience spaces, well, that is, until I found BASILE. My first project here included four features from sequenced light shows to kinetic elements.

 

The projects that followed allowed me to further explore my passion for digital architecture. I feel very fortunate to work somewhere that fosters unrestricted creative thinking and playfulness, as often these approaches can be dismissed when architects and designers graduate and enter the “real-world” where corporate restrictions limit this type of thinking. It is trail-blazing companies like BASILE that move us forward as a civilization, so I’m always excited to see what we come up with next.

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Prototyping

One of the most important aspects of our work involves prototyping, which is crucial for kinetic and interactive movement-based pieces that make use of technology. In our studio we test ideas to find solutions. At Basile we can design, prototype, and build in-house, thus streamlining the concept-to-product process. An example of this involved designing a liquor shelving system to maximize storage while making it easily accessible to the staff. Our solution was to hang shelves above a bar that pivot down like a drawbridge, triggered by specific hand signals from the staff. It was a successful team effort.

 
 

We spit-balled crazy ideas and discovered solutions from within our team of talented fabricators, engineers, designers and techs—everyone contributed to the final product.

Prototyping is key to our success; it gets us to a workable and functional piece of design that’s also visually engaging. At the end of the day, ‘we build cool shit’ and create the spaces that dreams are made of.

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Go Kart Racing

BASILE thrives from its strong company culture. One of my favorite team building activities started with a group of fabricators, designers, and engineers taking an evening trip to K1 Speed where we showed our true grit and willingness to run each other off the road.

There is nothing like ramming into your coworkers with a go-cart to accelerate team bonding!

 
 

Events like these are a great way for us to blow off steam and to get to know each other in a fun, high energy environment outside of the office. In the studio, we work together intensely to reach our goals, and I love being a team player. But as far as the track goes… let’s just say I’m in pole position and ready to rev it up again!

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Blooms

One of the standout features of our project Born & Raised, the high-end steakhouse in Little Italy, is the wooden blooms that punctuate the dining room. These massive yet intricate pieces were created out of necessity, as the building had to be retrofitted to add the second level bar, leaving unsightly brackets in the main dining room. Our wooden blooms were designed to cover the structural supports.

With the ceiling being so low, we needed something unusual and beautiful to help the room open up. The curve of the blooms keeps the eye from fixating on the low ceiling and informed the curvilinear design of the entire dining space. Various models were explored in Sketchup until we found a nice balance of classic features with a modern take.

The final bloom engineered solution manifested like an Erector Set with the largest spans of wood and lowest number of fins in order to keep the blooms as circular as possible. They were built in upside-down halves and took up the entire shop floor of our studio, which looked like a scene out of Alice in Wonderland. Most people assume the blooms were just a design feature, but, in fact, the design stemmed from function, from the layout to hiding the mechanical equipment and structural support. The time spent planning paid off in a fast fabrication as each bloom only took one day to install.

 
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Scooby Doo Wall

In every episode of Scooby Do, Shaggy and Scooby inevitably discover a secret panel, hidden passageway, or revolving wall that whirls them into some alternative universe. Taking this concept to its most elegant form, BASILE created its very own “Scooby Do Wall” inside Raised by Wolves, a boutique spirits shop and hidden cocktail bar in La Jolla’s Westfield UTC Mall. The entire plan for this bar was built around this revolving Scooby Do idea—one minute you’re in one reality, and the next, you discover a whole new world. Creating this experiential wonder was no easy task, but the BASILE team eagerly took on the challenge. A rotating car platform became the basis for this Scooby Do feature that straddles both rooms. Inside the bottle shop, a fireplace scene with two chairs invites guests to take a seat and, then, as if by magic, they are spun around and transported into a library lounge evoking Paris in the early 1900s.

 
 

The double-sided fireplace was a complex piece of engineering when it came to designing around the two working fireplaces. Truthfully, it stumped our engineers for a while as it was difficult to get it to function and there were some tense moments, but finally it worked.

We cladded the car rotator with inlaid flooring and put custom panels on the walls to make the space feel seamless, and we successfully produced the ultimate Scooby Do secret entrance to the bar.

As Raised by Wolves sits in the middle of a massive Southern California retail mall—we wanted to create something that was a mind-bending contrast to the typical food and drink spot where people could take a break from shopping. People actually line up out the door to experience the Scooby Do Wall as it brings a whimsical element to this bar scene and adult playground. It’s fun to watch people’s faces—the complete surprise when they suddenly spin into an alternative reality where craft cocktails and a walk back in time await.

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Flip Dots

For years, Paul has been obsessed with the reimagining of what the flip dot could be in a modern setting. His interest was sparked by a nostalgia for the split-flap destination and timetable signage in train stations of the 1950s. These old-fashioned display boards, which added a little drama and suspense to the art of travel, have mostly been replaced by LED boards today.

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Lulled by the split-flaps’ soft, peaceful, water-feature-esque sound, Paul wanted to integrate this sensory experience into his work. He found a company in Poland that manufactures individual flip dots and then had the BASILE in-house technology team add a modern-day spin.

Working toward a goal of making the flip dots interactive, the tech team installed a camera into the schematics that reflects and mimics the motion of the viewer as they pass by. They also developed the electronics and programming to control what is being projected to the viewer. This lo-fi technology has a big impact within a space, creating the opportunity for passersby to share a memorable moment with these dynamic flip-dots.

 
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Details, Details, Details

When BASILE was called in to re-envision The Nolen, Downtown San Diego’s popular rooftop bar, the team decided to create a more intimate experience where guests could gather and converse in a cozy environment filled with greenery, fire features and inviting nooks. By re-orienting the seating from exterior facing to looking inward, it shifted into a more communal, human-centric space where the city views became more of a backdrop to great conversation and libations versus a focal point. The overall design aesthetic is BASILE’s take on mid-century with art deco flair. Remodel details included a 12.5 foot quartzite bar table with brass plummet detail inlaid and “flowering” steel bases with wood trim.

 

The drink rails feature simple inlay and bases that flow seamlessly as extensions of the bar table. The steel and tambour U-shaped booths have planters on top acting as transitions between the spaces. The booth components mimic the bar table and drink rails as well. The existing fire pit underwent a complete makeover featuring a new eight foot diameter quartzite top with brass and soap stone inlays whose design represents a compass inspired by the Foucault Pendulum. All tables have an overlapping flat bar design and quartzite tops with similar “flowering” bases. The dining and lounge banquettes curve around the perimeter and their low backs allow for uninterrupted views of the city.

The refresh on this rooftop scene has transformed The Nolen into a much more approachable and informal gathering spot framed by great views. This project was more of an unusual project considering we were only going to be replacing the furniture on the patio, we typically always start with a clean slate. To say we had a clear direction would be misleading, we love designing furniture and this design entailed something that was incredibly strong, but movable and capable of withstanding the rooftop weather. With that said, we chose our pallet of finishes that consisted of steel, leather, outdoor fabric, stone and brass as the main accent. Our goal was to play with curves and implement furniture that quickly and easily unlocked/locked together, due to the davits that circled the patio walls.

 
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