Renown on a global scale for its signature whimsical installations, MOSS AND LAM debuts two England-based projects for acclaimed interior design firm Yabu Pushelberg. Founded in 1987 by Deborah Moss and her late husband Edward Lam, the Canadian custom art studio pays tribute to English culture as they combine poetry with magic, enhancing London’s Pan Pacific and The Londoner hotels’ ultramodern interiors through a series of unique murals and sculptures.
Upon first entering the majestic reception at the Pan Pacific hotel, guests are immediately greeted by a large-scale mural depicting an enchanting setting, starring a greyhound and a parrot engaging in a philosophical conversation with other animals.
“The Sweet Adventure” – explains Deborah Moss – “refers to a passage of text by William Shakespeare from Henry V, but more recently popularized by Sherlock Holmes – ‘The game’s afoot Watson! The three main animals, a greyhound, a parrot and a lemur, are intent in solving a philosophical puzzle that leads to the discovery of the civility of comprehension that is possible between like-minded soul mates”.
Moss and Lam, Pan Pacific Hotel, Photo: Michael Sinclair
The captivating visuals of the ground floor continue at the hotel’s Ginger Lily Bar, home of a second Moss and Lam mural. This one depicts an expressionistic storm that pays homage to the turbulent nature of the marine paintings of another British icon, J.M.W. Turner. The natural phenomena beloved by the artist – air, water, wind- are recreated with a variety of nuances of shimmering colors emblemizing lightness and a dramatic sensuality.
At just 500 meters from the legendary Piccadilly Circus, Moss and Lam continues its visual storytelling at The Londoner, crafting a surreal experience in the lobby and adjacent areas. Sculptures and models reminiscent of De Chirico’s metaphysical architectures adorn the hotel reception, luring guests to enter an imaginary world engulfed in mysticism. Bust sculptures fill the shelves of the hotel bar, giving a classical era feel to all visitors, like divine archeological rarities bringing us into a dreamy dimension. Always keen on using a mix of contrasting shapes and materials, Moss and Lam concludes its surrealist journey upstairs, in the whiskey room. Here individual sculptures of hands and eyes are bound together, alluding to the thematic symbolic bond between the sensorial experience of touch and vision. Shimmering pearls and crystals in the shape of eyebrows contour the arch of the eyes, highlighting their shape emphasizing their function as the main instrument for gaze and observation.
The result is a hypnotic interactive experience where the boundaries between real and surreal are obfuscated, leading the viewer to step into a familiar yet surreal world where hospitality becomes a hymn to a new joie de vivre and an antidote to unpredictable times.