The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach commissions NYC-based celebrated designer Eric Villency to refashion the resort Club Lounge, as repositioning and redesign of the luxury hotel continues. Known for his fashion acumen and impeccable style, Villency and his design team bring Mad Men glamour to Palm Beach, capturing chic mid-century Palm Beach sensibility in a modern day interpretation. His design further embraces indulgent details, from the cocktail lounge vibe to the decorative elements, such as custom-designed wallpaper murals and Carrera marble bar tops.

Villency and his team capture touches of glamour in their retro Palm Beach look, with a custom crafted bar featuring vintage serving ware, swanky light fixtures, and sumptuous dining chairs. Villency sought additional inspiration while foraging the renowned Dixie Highway for period furnishings. “It is my intention to recreate a Club Lounge that is an alluring space to linger and relax, with fun, playful and surprising elements, capturing the mid-century style, elegance and design,” states Villency. “We’ve opened and brightened the view to welcome the tropical Florida sunshine and evoke a greater sense of place. If Mad Men were in Palm Beach, this might be a location where the Drapers would be vacationing and entertaining,” he adds. “My grandfather was my biggest design inspiration. A treasured photo I have of him is the embodiment of that lifestyle - closing my eyes, I tried to envision a space where he would socialize.”

Villency further embraces the distinct mid-century Palm Beach style through his collaboration with acclaimed textile designer, Wook Kim. Villency and Kim worked together to create a striking design using iconic imagery to tell a stylistic and historical narrative. Also important to both designers was the concept of creating a unique venue-- exclusive to The Ritz- Carlton Palm Beach. Kim’s hand-sketched and custom designed wall murals--pieces of artwork in and of themselves--have been specifically created for the niches in the Club Lounge and include two-distinct patterns.

The first pattern, titled “Monkey Cocktail,” captures the botanical history and “monkey business” of Palm Beach before and after the shipwreck of the “Providencia”. The vessel stocked with coconuts was enroute from Havana to Barcelona when it ran aground in South Florida. Local lore credits the shipwreck of the “Providencia” as the catalyst for the infamous palm trees, now synonymous with Palm Beach. “Society” monkeys started as an urban legend of monkeys being aboard the shipwrecked “Providencia”. But the actual story of the Palm Beach monkey was about Johnnie Brown, a spider monkey owned by Addison Mizner, a society eccentric and famed architect, who lived in Palm Beach in the 1920s. Both elements of palm trees and monkeys are key elements of this wall covering. The pattern appears dense but deliberately layered to create depth of space. The monkeys are scattered throughout the pattern randomly, creating moments of surprise for the observant guest--depicted in playful scenarios and whimsical gestures, reflective of the iconic 1950s cocktail culture. Guests will delight by various monkeys with parasols, cocktails, bartending and having conversations.

The color scheme has also been purposefully selected to reflect the mid-century time frame and Palm Beach lifestyle; light aqua blue and kelly green hues reflect the tropical South Florida beaches, with sunny highlights of yellow, brown from the palm trees and tan from the sand.

The second pattern, titled “Toile de Palm,” has been intentionally paralleled from wall to wall, which leads the guest towards the entrance door of the Club Lounge. The distinctive trellis pattern of Palm Beach maps captures historical Palm Beach vignettes in the telling of the story: a 1930s car and gentleman (inspired by Villency’s grandfather) and a man riding a bicycle –both on Worth Avenue; two bathing beauties lounging in Cabanas; two swimmers in the Atlantic ocean; a couple dancing; and a classic yacht – all from the early 1900s.

Kim, noted for his ability to create digital versions of hand-drawn, artisanal sketches, paid specific attention to the history and trademarks of The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach. “In the designing of both papers, I sought to capture Eric’s inspiration and create a story that captured a concept of Palm Beach history through a stretch of time. The coloration of both patterns comes from an influence of the tropical hues of the 60s and my own inspirations of the colors of Palm Beach,” states Kim.

The redesigned Club Lounge is the first phase of Villency’s refashioning of The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach and additional redesigned suites and outlets are slated for 2012. “We are truly fortunate to collaborate with such a talented designer as Eric and his design team. Eric has captured the vintage Palm Beach lifestyle in a modern context and has enhanced the Club Lounge offerings for our guests. This is the beginning of a greater collaboration to come,” says Michael King, General Manager, The Ritz- Carlton, Palm Beach.

The newly designed Mad Men-style Club Lounge is available to hotel guests who book rooms and suites on the Club Lounge floor and is open from 7:00 am to 10:00 pm, offering complimentary food and beverage throughout the day. With a pitcher of top shelf martinis, alluring new views and refashioned sense of place, The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach guests have another reason to play in Palm Beach this season.

About The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach

The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach is a Forbes Five Star and 2011 AAA Five Diamond Award property, whichcompleted a more-than $130 million transformation in 2009. The beachfront resort welcomes guests with breathtaking ocean views immediately upon entry and a gorgeous outdoor terrace with evening ambiance and a fire pit. There are 310 spacious guestrooms and luxurious suites – including the 2,755-square-foot Presidential Suite – and 23,000 square feet of indoor meeting space. Dining options include Angle, a contemporary American supper club; Temple Orange for traditional Italian comfort food; Breeze as a chic burger bistro set oceanside; Oceanfront Cabanas for intimate affairs; Eau Spa Café; and Stir Bar in the lobby lounge for light nibbles and refreshments. The Business Lounge and Resort Cabanas cater to travelers who wish to combine work and play. Eau Spa offers a contemporary take on spa-going and day-long unwinding with a multitude of fanciful treatments, a full-service salon and fitness center. For more information visit www.ritzcarlton.com/resorts/palm_beach.

About Eric Villency and The Villency Design Group

Eric Villency is the principal of the Villency Design Group, a fully integrated design and branding firm that works across a broad spectrum of disciplines including product development and fabrication, new media, industrial design, fashion and fulfillment. Eric has worked on several notable design projects including: The Rudy Giuliani Urgent Care Unit at St. Vincent's Hospital (New York); Delta airlines Crown Lounges in Miami and Raleigh; The Benz Star lounge at Mercedes-Benz fashion week (New York & Miami); The Club level lounge at Citifield (the new stadium for the New York Mets); Starwood brands including W Hotels and Sheraton; The Bryant Park Hotel; the Plaza private residences, and offices for Kathy Lee Gifford and Ben Silverman. He is currently developing EXIT 37 a boutique retail development in Long Island with tenants including Soul Cycle, Organic Avenue, Ffactor, Kidville and Completely Bare. Eric has overseen the design and development of several notable products including shoes and a new indoor cycling bike for Soul Cycle, the rework of Organic Avenue’s signature glass bottle and several products for the W Hotel stores. Eric has been the recipient of several design awards including: the FIT "All Star Salute" award as well as the IFDA "design Industry" award. Eric has also lectured at FIT and the MIT Sloan School of Management. For more information, please visit www.ericvillency.com

About Eau Spa

Eau Spa is a 42,000 sq. ft. spa wonderland located at the Forbes Five-Star, AAA Five diamond property The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach. Renowned for elevating the spa experience to an entirely new level, every touch has been carefully thought out to help the guests engage and enjoy their experience. The Pause, Play and Perfect philosophy is encapsulated in the idea of ‘me time’; taking some well deserved time away from daily worries to spend on yourself. Master skincare specialists present their personalization, immediate results and high touch luxury treatments. Leading skin care authority, Dr. Zein Obagi's newest product line, ZO Skin Health™, provides individualized skin care products that focus on prevention and maintenance. The specialized Kerastase salon at Eau
Spa features six chairs, including a master chair for special occasions and weddings where guests can work with red carpet stylists. Discover the baroque and beautiful Eau Spa and Salon where primping and personal attention are always in style. To learn more about Eau Spa, please visit www.eauspa.com.

About Wook Kim and Wook Kim Studio

Wook Kim is an American Designer and has a line of wallpaper under his name. Wook considers art an integral presence in the every day. His wall coverings, eschewing distinctions made between “art” and the “decorative arts,” reflect his philosophy. He has worked and developed designs collaboratively with Amore Pacific, DEN NYC, Doori, Le Sportsac, MOSCOT Eyewear, 3.1 Philip Lim and Richard Chai, For more information, please visit
www.wookkim.com