The Mondrian
The Mondrian’s Next Act
By Elyse Glickman
The Mondrian Hotel set the standard for L.A. boutique hotels, becoming a go-to spot for fundraisers, cocktail galas, product launches, and awards season bashes. As times change, it retooled and reinvented itself in a sleek, subtle, and more mature style. The simple, austere structure now housing one of the Sunset Strip’s most enduringly trendy hotels began its life in 1959 as an apartment building offering its tenants a fabulously situated pool and location, location, location. Though the minimalist dwelling may have gotten lost in the shuffle during the Strip’s heavy metal heyday in the 1970s and 80s, good things were in store.
Once upon a time…
Enter Ian Shrager, a reigning hospitality prince famed for spinning inauspicious structures into gold (most notably, Studio 54). After establishing himself as hotelier royalty in New York for his professional, post-disco second act, he found a goldmine within the simple Sunset Boulevard building. With a little help from his friends (including design minimalist king Philippe Starch and New York-based restaurateur Jeffrey Chodorow), the Mondrian took flight as a property that served up the right blend of exclusivity, cutting edge interior design, and cuisine in both its private and public spaces.
With young Hollywood culture taking shape in the mid-1990s, the timing of Mondrian’s dominance of the Sunset scene couldn’t have been better. Asia de Cuba’s interpretation of the then-new phenomenon of Asian-fusion cuisine and the Skybar’s selective clientele policy, as well as the hotel’s cache among industry trendsetters, kept the party going well into the 2000s. By that point, Morgans Hotels, which now owned property, knew it was time to update the fairy tale.
A happy Hollywood beginning and middle…
The fact that Asia de Cuba and Skybar (right) still bring in patrons and keep food and drink interesting and fresh is no small feat—something as important to party planners considering locations as it is for individual visitors and locals. However, with the siren call of the latest-and-greatest in high concept boutique hotels cropping up along the strip like bougainvillea, the Mondrian had to change with the times.
Enter, stage left, designer Benjamin Noriega Ortiz, who took on the task of revitalizing the property. While this nationally acclaimed interior designer kept in place the original décor inspirations and Southern California’s natural geographic attributes, he infused new energy that kept pace with the Sunset Strip’s ever-changing definitions of glamour and modernity.
Noriega Ortiz’s design statement for the Mondrian is framed with thirty-foot mahogany doors and naturalistic daylight that plays off the updated palate of creamy whites and warm marigolds that replaces the
shocking white of the 1996 original. Other pops of color come into play, including rich blues and purples and custom-designed furniture, including a playful Lucite swing and mushroom-shaped concierge center.
“The design of the hotel is so adored among trendsetters and people in the hospitality industry that I’ve heard the word Mondrian used as an adjective,” muses Noriega Ortiz. “With the redesign, which we started in 2007, I did not want to eradicate Philippe Starck’s original vision, I wanted to build on it and enhance it. Like all interiors, the Mondrian’s space should be elevated into a living work of art in which the intrinsic human desire for comfort and beauty are naturally aligned.”
“There is a wittiness at Mondrian that pulls people in and encourages interaction and fun.”
Continuing its Fairy tale—and Others’
During this time, Skybar received a recent facelift from Tim Andreas. Under his hand, 1990s minimalism is replaced with earthy, warm furnishings handmade in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, including more grown-up lounge seating and a yellow and gold color scheme that echoes a fine beach club. Between the achievements of Noriega Ortiz and Andreas, the new-and-improved Mondrian has provided the perfect backdrop for such recent charity events as No on Prop 8, American Water Revolution, Generosity Water, Spirit of Hope for AIDS, My Friends Place, and a film shoot for Malaria No More.
While the redesign does not impact the actual layout of the property, it has improved the aesthetics of the spaces with a new lightness and energy. This in turn makes all of Mondrian’s venues even more desirable a spot for a fundraiser.
“There is a wittiness at Mondrian that pulls people in and encourages interaction and fun,” notes one busy staffer who chooses to remain anonymous and discreet (something the hotel is still famous and respected for). “It appeals to charity event producers because they want to avoid a feeling of heaviness or seriousness around their events. They want their guests to enjoy themselves and affiliate a positive experience with
their organization.”
