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Project name: Nobu Ryokan
Category: Hotel Under 50 Rooms
Location: Malibu, California
Date completed: March 2017
Interior designer: SPCH Interiors
Architect: Lead Architect: STUDIO PCH/ Architect: Montalba Architects
Hotel Group: Nobu Hospitality

Studio PCH, the lead architect on this project, and Montalba Architects were commissioned to transform a vintage beach motel by combining the minimalist aesthetic of traditional Japanese inns with the cool elegance of the California coast. Perched on the shores of Carbon Beach in Malibu, California, Nobu Ryokan gives new meaning to the term boutique hotel. The complete renovation has transformed a former 50’s era 21-room beach motel into a 16-room state-of-the-art retreat that showcases rich natural materials. Marrying Japanese sensibilities and modern detailing, the buildings boast cleans lines in teak, bronze and limestone.

The suites are surrounded by several lush garden courtyards providing tranquillity and privacy. Grand teak sliding glass doors offer stunning ocean views and the freedom to experience the indoor-outdoor Southern California lifestyle all year round. Skylights wash natural light into the bathrooms whose walls are clad in limestone accented with bronze fixtures. Each holds a custom soaking tub of solid teak. “There is a moment when the sun enters through the bathroom skylight when you can feel the stillness and calm settle over you.” says Studio PCH founder and Principal Severine Tatangelo.

Guests can wander through the garden’s meandering paths, which lead to an intimate enclave with a grand outdoor board-formed concrete fireplace, or to the inn’s central ipe wood deck with its expansive views of the Malibu pier to the west, Palos Verdes peninsula to the east and the endless sea to the south. Through their love of the craft, detail and rigor, Studio PCH bring these characteristics of home to a commercial space. Privileged with their founding projects, Studio PCH have continued to bring this sensitivity to their design and process. As the design studio has grown, they have maintained a select collection of people who all strive to cultivate their love of design and creation through continuous education and exploration.