Colourful slip-resistant tiles have been used in the swimming pool and surround of Birch Lido, continuing the language of usable art, playfulness and sculpture found at the hotel.
As part of Birch hotel, a Grade II listed creative escape that ‘looks like a hotel but feels like a festival’, the lido is free to use for the public and has been transformed with Chorus tiles from Strata Tiles.
Featuring on the surround and in the pool, Chorus is a collection of excellent value tiles in a range of 30 colours. The range’s palette and matt finish were key in their selection for the lido. Ciarán O’Brien, founding director, Red Deer, the architecture practice responsible for Birch hotel’s transformation explains:
“The client was interested in continuing the language of usable art, playfulness and sculpture found throughout the site and we wanted to create something that felt informal, almost festival like. Unlike other tiles we looked at, Strata’s Chorus range had a great selection of pastel colours that seemed more natural in tone.
“Open and playful in their pastel warmth, as opposed to the bold colours you tend to find. This earthiness captured the essence of Birch. The good price point and lead time, along with the matt texture, made Chorus a winner.”
With slip-resistance a pre-requisite at surrounds and the banked entry to the children’s pool, Red Deer selected a textured finish with PTV 36+ performance, and thanks to the numerous options in Chorus, opted for a smooth matt finish in the pool itself. Completed in early 2021, installing the tiles in the lido required precise cutting at various angles to make sure the carefully planned colour mix remained beautifully sequenced throughout the pool.
“The client loves the lido and the tiles are a huge part of its success,” continues Ciarán O’Brien. “It really captures the spirit of what we set out to do and thank you to the team at Strata Tiles for another great project completed together.”
