FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Maison Francois Design Unveiled by John Whelan for The Guild of Saint Luke

London, UK - The Guild of Saint Luke, led by creative director John Whelan, has unveiled Maison Francois, a groundbreaking restaurant design that challenges the traditional brasserie genre. Inspired by Postmodernism and Brutalism, the design team transformed a large, impersonal space into an intimate and inviting dining experience.

Unlike the typical Art Deco inspiration, Maison Francois draws from successful residential conversions of Brutalist spaces, such as Ricardo Bofill’s La Fabrica, to create a sense of warmth within an imposing concrete environment. The design features a Brutalist ceiling coffering, polished concrete floor, and curved walnut banquettes with privacy glass uppers, all upholstered in resistant cream linen to evoke intimacy.

The 500 square meters floor space restaurant boasts a central island pass as the focal point, bringing the kitchen into direct conversation with the room. The space is adorned with noble materials, from patinated nickel to burnished brass, creating a vibrant and warm atmosphere.

Starting in September 2019 and opening in September 2020, Maison Francois represents years of research and application of knowledge gained from restoring historic brasseries in France. The design overcame the challenge of animating a cavernous concrete shell to create visibility from the street, evolving the brasserie genre with contemporary and historic references.

Photography by Oskar Proctor

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