The impact of design on the modern traveller's lifestyle and the need for a reappraisal of the boutique resort experience in the 'Asian Century' shaped the creation of the new Regent Bali, elevating BLINK Design Group to a place among the finalists of the prestigious Gold Key awards for the second year running. In an Asian clean sweep of the "world's best resort" category, Regent Bali shares the honours alongside Haitang Bay No. 9 in Sanya, Hainan Island, and the Sofitel Nusa Dua, in Bali. The winner will be announced at a gala dinner in New York on November 10. BLINK's senior creative director and founder Clint Nagata said that each of the resort's 94 suites was created as three distinct sanctuaries, a lavish inward-focused bathroom, an understated sleeping sanctuary, and a 25sqm outdoor living area enclosed by laser-cut screens inspired by a classic Balinese batik motif. "With the growth in high-end travel to Bali coming predominantly from within Asia, and especially from China, it was important to consider how these guests would perceive and experience the resort and the destination," Mr Nagata said. "A key insight shared by the Regent Hotels development team was that while these new Asian arrivals to Bali wanted the outdoor lifestyle, they were not likely to be found working on their tans on a sun-baked beach, or wandering temples in the heat of the day. "We had been researching the layout of Balinese temples and the concept of sanctuaries within sanctuaries, and suddenly all the pieces came together." He said the main living area in each Regent Bali suite was almost entirely outdoors - protected from the sun, and with privacy preserved by several strategically placed wooden screens that became showpieces, carved from wood and using a repeated circular motif. The traditional Kawung, a Balinese Batik pattern used by royalty and featuring four circles focused on a point, was reinterpreted and inspired latticework, ceramic design and ceiling reliefs. It is a recurring motif throughout the resort that connects Bali's past and present. BLINK was intimately involved in curating artwork as well as individual stone and wood pieces produced by the island's famed craftsmen. Regent Bali opened in June last year in the exclusive Sanur District on a site encompassing 10 acres of tropical gardens with a 200m golden beach, featuring 94 suites, one beachfront Regent Villa, 25 Regent Residences, a spa and two premier dining options. Regent Bali and BLINK were also honoured in the 2014 Asia-Pacific Hotel Awards, with a Highly Commended awarded in the year's Best Hotel Interior category, for its benchmark-setting work on the recently opened Regent Phuket Cape Panwa. Upon naming Regent Bali in its coveted 2014 Hot List, Condé Nast Traveller wrote: "The over-scaled Regent is immediately impressive, with skyscraper-high ceilings in the lobby and an enormous courtyard dominated by a water feature with a temple on top." The Suites are "uncluttered and serene, mixing batiks, rattan and marble with a contemporary eye, and the bedrooms are huge, with lattice-screened balconies the same size." Destinasian magazine also praised BLINK's "stunning fusion of the Regent's extravagant resort design and luxe Balinese accoutrements", in particular the use of native merbau and bingkirai, Indonesian timbers, their dark tones contrasting with a cool palette of grays, blues and sparks of orange, while the design maximises the ocean views. Says Mr Nagata: "The vision we shared with Regent Hotels was to spatially redefine the resort guestroom while visually capturing the Balinese spirit from a new perspective. It's the opposite of 'wow' factor design. It's more like the 'ahh' factor."
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