This was a total renovation of a small beer bar in LA's Chinatown neighborhood.
The design pays homage to chinese culture without pretending to mimic it. Notable elements include real copper wall panels with custom bamboo floral prints, intricate custom lighting from local firm Sector Xero, high end woodwork, custom display tables with integrated original chinese wood screens, and of course the 100 chinese lanterns of various sizes and brightnesses.
While tiny, the bar is designed to blur it's own boundaries. The variety of custom wall panels all stop well short of the ceiling, with mirror above them. This creates the illusion of an open night sky above, with the bar feeling more like a safe haven within an infinite unknown.