{"id":102896,"date":"2025-10-27T04:19:11","date_gmt":"2025-10-27T04:19:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/102896\/"},"modified":"2025-10-27T04:19:11","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T04:19:11","slug":"wunder-werkz-chooses-humble-materials-for-semiprecious-bar-in-denver","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/102896\/","title":{"rendered":"Wunder Werkz chooses “humble” materials for Semiprecious bar in Denver"},"content":{"rendered":"

A countertop made entirely from recycled plastic<\/a> anchors this colourful bar<\/a> in Denver<\/a>, Colorado, designed and co-owned by local studio Wunder Werkz.<\/p>\n

Wunder Werkz<\/a> teamed up with co-owners Mike Capoferri and Rahul Marwah to open Semiprecious<\/a> in a former 1950s furniture showroom in the Sunnyside neighbourhood.<\/p>\n

\"BarSemiprecious occupies a 1950s furniture showroom and retains many of the building’s original features<\/p>\n

The design studio led the interiors and branding for the project, primarily using unpretentious materials that are easy to source.<\/p>\n

“While the space feels incredibly design forward and thoughtful, it is really all humble materials,” said Wunder Werkz partner Jon Hartman. “We used a pegboard bar face, white oak, tile, paint and industrial fixtures \u2013 all readily accessible but elevated through their thoughtful application.”<\/p>\n

\"BarThe decision to use humble materials and bold colours in the space is a nod to Le Corbusier’s Cabanon<\/p>\n

The exception is the bar counter, which was created by The Good Plastic Company<\/a> using 100 per cent post-consumer appliances to create a faux marble effect.<\/p>\n

Claimed to the first of its kind in the US, the counter provides a distinguished and durable “canvas” for serving a menu of avant-garde cocktails.<\/p>\n

\"CornerOxblood red is used liberally, including for the banquette upholstery<\/p>\n

The material decision and colour scheme for the interior reference Swiss-French designer Le Corbusier’s Cabanon<\/a> on the C\u00f4te d’Azur.<\/p>\n

Oxblood is used across the back bar, ceiling, banquette upholstery and bar stools, and a brighter shade of red coats the pegboard on the counter front.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, cobalt blue appears in a band of tiles that forms a baseboard as well as dining chairs, drinks table tops, and decorative items like mirror frames and plant pots.<\/p>\n

Many of the original building’s architectural motifs were retained, such as the large canted windows and stacked stone facade.<\/p>\n

\"Faux-marbleThe bar counter made by The Good Plastic Company comprises 100 per cent recycled appliances<\/p>\n

The visual identity for Semiprecious is based on 1950s drinking venues in New York City, such as the prestigious Stork Club,<\/p>\n

“Both the handwritten logo and the Swiss typographic layout are anchored by a Pegasus mascot, illustrated to be equal parts cute, approachable and more than a little silly,” said the team.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Ellipsis<\/p>\n

SML Studio Architecture creates cafe and bar inside Vancouver’s Waterfall Building\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

Wunder Werkz’s decision to become a partner in the project stemmed from a desire for deep collaboration and to highlight the growing importance of design as part of a successful hospitality business strategy.<\/p>\n

“We firmly believe that design can be a differentiator, determining a project’s success or failure,” said Hartman. “And since we have a wealth of experience working in the hospitality space, it only makes sense to take a financial stake in the brands we build.”<\/p>\n

\"RowPops of cobalt blue are added via dining chairs and the tops of wooden drinks tables<\/p>\n

“Now as partners in Semiprecious, we’re using design as a strategy to solve issues, sharing in the success of our decisions as well as the risks,” he continued.<\/p>\n

“It changes the paradigm, allowing us to work with Mike and his team to creatively and conceptually craft something definitively new and interesting.”<\/p>\n

\"FullyThe bar in Denver’s Sunnyside neighbourhood serves a menu of avant-garde cocktails<\/p>\n

Also in Denver, Wunder Werkz created the visual identity for Michelin Star-winning restaurant Brut\u00f8<\/a>, which explores Brutalist principles through typography, materiality and spatial behaviour.<\/p>\n

Other recently opened bars with striking interiors include a day-to-night space<\/a> inside Vancouver’s modernist Waterfall Building, and a cafe and wine bar<\/a> featuring stained glass windows and custom wooden shutters in Almaty, Kazakhstan.<\/p>\n

The photography is by Luke Gottlieb<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A countertop made entirely from recycled plastic anchors this colourful bar in Denver, Colorado, designed and co-owned by…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":102897,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[442,498,499,500,6128,2112,42628,501,156,16523,111,139,69,1621,1622,3337],"class_list":{"0":"post-102896","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-arts","9":"tag-arts-and-design","10":"tag-artsanddesign","11":"tag-artsdesign","12":"tag-bars","13":"tag-colorado","14":"tag-denver","15":"tag-design","16":"tag-entertainment","17":"tag-interiors","18":"tag-new-zealand","19":"tag-newzealand","20":"tag-nz","21":"tag-sectionall","22":"tag-sectioninteriors","23":"tag-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102896"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102896\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/102897"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}