Hotel15 – A Social Media Hotel by Harrington Graduate Students

When Interior Design graduate students Aleksandra Furman (MID), Ryan Ross (MAID) and Manuel Navarro-Soto (MID) created their Social Media Hotel15 for their MID530 Advanced Studio I: Creative Collaboration class led by Interior Design Instructor Daniela Ghertovici, Graduate Faculty (Interior Design), it created quite a buzz.

 

Hotel15 was the student winner of the John Hardy Group- and Hospitality Design magazine-sponsored Radical Innovation in Hospitality Award competition. You can read about the concept here. 

 

Recently Hospitality Design released a full press release on the design! Check it out at http://www.hospitalitydesign.com/hospitalitydesign/projects/Radical-Innovation-i-2378.shtml

 

Included in the article is a comment by Aleksandra, who said, “The idea behind Hotel15 came to me over drinks with friends. We were discussing society’s obsession with different forms of social media such as Facebook, Foursquare, and Chatroulette, and YouTube. I think the core customer of Hotel15 is someone that is willing to give up privacy for attention. Right now, the idea seems a bit shocking and voyeuristic, but I believe that in a few years this will be the norm.”

 

What do you think? Ready to watch and be watched on curtain walls of your hotel? Gives everyone a chance to be their own reality star 😉

 

Design courtesy Aleksandra Furman, Ryan Ross and Manuel Navarro-Soto

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Harrington students from Masters in Interior Design Program win Hospitality Competition

When Harrington Interior Design graduate students Aleksandra Furman (MID), Ryan Ross (MAID) and Manuel Navarro-Soto (MID) began their concept project for their MID530 Advanced Studio I: Creative Collaboration class led by Interior Design Instructor Daniela Ghertovici, Graduate Faculty (Interior Design), they never knew just how far their project would go.

Aleks, Manuel, and Ryan’s design concept was Hotel 15, an online social networking hotel that enables guests to become fragments of mass media culture. The rooms and public spaces of the hotel become a virtual stage for patrons.  Participants have the option of activating a live video stream of their interactions at the hotel which is then placed on the hotel website.  Online participants can interact with hotel guests via video chat and vote on their favorite hotel guest.  The top voted guest will then be displayed on the hotel façade.  In addition to the hotel website there is an iPhone application which allows people to monitor the activities going on at Bar 15 and Hotel 15.    

  

See all of pictures of the design here.

Early this year, the three graduate students submitted their design for consideration in the Radical Innovation in Hospitality Contest. Co-founded and produced by Hospitality Design Group (HD Group)  and the John Hardy Group (JHG),  the award recognizes ingenuity in a built or un-built hospitality concept.  Projects from around the world are submitted for this award by hospitality brands, design and consulting professionals, and students.  Entries are judged each year by a panel of industry experts.

In April Aleks, Ryan and Manuel received the exciting news that their entry was chosen to receive the Student “Judges Special Award,” along with the invitation to attend the HD Expo Show  on May 19th in Las Vegas, NV, free of charge. In Las Vegas, the Harrington Graduates were presented with the $1500 prize money (via one huuuge check) and were published in the HD magazine and on hdmag.com.  

Congrats to Aleks, Ryan and Manuel, and we look forward to reading any future updates on their winning design!

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