Bolstering an already expansive design landscape, Gorgeous George has just opened its doors in Cape Town's vibrant inner city. Located between St George’s Mall and the famed Green Market Square, the 32-room boutique property comprises two landmark buildings – one Art Deco, the other Edwardian – originally stitched together in the 1940s and now repurposed by local firm Urbane Citizen Architecture.
Inside, the Johannesburg-based interior designer, Tristan du Plessis has focused on a strong contemporary African aesthetic, dressing the raw, urban bones of the building, like the steel window frames and concrete beams, with a bold palette and pieces from top South African talent including furniture by David Krynauw, Gregor Jenkin, Dokter and Misses and Porky Hefer, whose crocodile swing chair certainly turns heads. ‘I wanted to go with people who were making really unique contemporary African design, like Jenkin, who is taking Victorian-style design and turning it on its head by crafting it in metal,’ explains du Plessis.
Diversions, of course, are dominated by Cape Town's wine, surf and mountain offerings, but don't miss out on Gigi Rooftop, the hotel's plant-filled indoor-outdoor bar, restaurant and pool space, where chef Guy Bennet serves a menu of updated classics – using fresh, local and seasonal ingredients – against a backdrop over downtown and beyond.
ADDRESS
118 St George’s Mall
-
Our Tech Editor's selection of new and upgraded audio players covers the full spectrum of formatsWhether it’s vinyl, cassette, CD or mp3, or even sound sources you’ve captured yourself, you’ll find a suitable device in this round-up of pocketable and portable audio players
-
This Swedish summer house is a family's serene retreat by the trees and the Baltic seaHorsö, a Swedish summer house by Atelier Alba is a playfully elegant retreat by the Kalmarsund Sea and a natural reserve
-
A new exhibition retraces 50 years of Pierre Paulin’s history around the table‘Les Tables de Pierre Paulin’ shows a lesser-known side of the designer’s creative world, accompanied by a new book tracing his wife’s hospitality around his iconic table designs. ‘A creator is never alone in his creation…’
-
Singita Ebony Lodge celebrates 30 years of wild beautySingita Ebony Lodge in Hazyview, South Africa, begins a new chapter with a refresh by Cécile & Boyd
-
A refreshed Cape Grace hotel embraces the best of South African heritageCape Town’s Cape Grace hotel reopens its doors following an extensive and playful renovation by international interior design studio, 1508 London
-
24 hours in Copenhagen: stay, bike, dine, and discover Danish designPlan your 24 hours in Copenhagen: sleepover in a former brewery, wake up with a wild swim, and immerse yourself in the home of a modernist master
-
Peter Beard’s biographer, Christopher Wallace, on writing the wild life of the quintessential Twentieth-Century ManAuthor Christopher Wallace traces the footsteps of the original playboy-artist-activist Peter Beard, travelling from Kenya, to the Serengeti, Cassis and beyond
-
Estelle Manor is a chic take on the hotel and country clubEstelle Manor, a transformed Grade II-listed house and estate in Oxfordshire, welcomes guests with Roman and Williams interiors, parasols by the pool, and a soon-to-open tepidarium
-
Maroma, A Belmond Hotel, Riviera Maya opens following a major redesignOn the Yucatán Peninsula, the new-look Maroma showcases local craftsmanship and Mayan tradition with interiors led by interior architecture studio Tara Bernerd & Partners
-
A weekend in wonderful CopenhagenThe ultimate weekend in Copenhagen starts here: discover the latest openings across the UNESCO World Capital of Architecture, stay in a hotel afloat, start your day with brilliant baked goods and ski down a power-station piste
-
The Largo brings craftsmanship and creativity to PortoThe Largo is the latest hospitality offering in Portugal's second city, conceived as an elevated residence with an art programme that connects it to the city’s creative community
