The project marks the first European commission delivered by BLINK’s newly established London studio. Completed in two phases, the renovation covers the hotel’s swimming pool and the new Guerlain Spa.
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The design brings together the French beauty heritage of Guerlain and the history of Hotel Barrière Le Normandy, one of the longstanding grand hotels on Normandy’s Côte Fleurie.
A nature-led design concept
BLINK developed the wellness areas around the concept of a “sojourn in nature”, drawing on Deauville’s coastal setting, architectural heritage and cultural associations.
The design combines nature-inspired textures, vintage details and visual links with the surrounding landscape. The spaces were planned as a sequence connecting the hotel’s history, Deauville’s coastal character and Guerlain’s design identity.
The Guerlain Spa sits at the centre of the wider wellness journey, incorporating references to the destination, Hotel Barrière Le Normandy and the beauty house’s approach to craftsmanship.
Materials reference the Normandy coast
French limestone is used across the spa flooring, while travertine covers the walls of the wet areas.
In the hammam, veined Calacatta Oro marble refers to Guerlain’s gold-toned visual heritage. The experiential shower features a stone mosaic finish.
Cedar has been used in the sauna, while split-face stone covers the opposite wall. Antique bronze taps are combined with black metal details throughout the design.
Clint Nagata, Founder and Creative Partner of BLINK Design Group, said: “These are materials chosen for their innate relationship with water, light and the landscape beyond.”
The architecture also incorporates design elements associated with Guerlain, including precision, refinement and a slower pace. The treatment and circulation areas use soft lighting, generous proportions and considered transitions between rooms.
Nagata said: “The spa asks nothing of you but time – which is, of course, entirely the point,” said Nagata. “Like the Guerlain treatments delivered within it, and like Deauville itself, it reveals itself only to those who resist the urge to rush. We designed luxury not to be worn on the outside, but instead to be felt somewhere more private – and all the more lasting for it.”
First European project from London studio
The Deauville project follows two decades of BLINK Design Group activity across Asia, the Middle East and the Indian Ocean.
The completion represents a new stage in the studio’s European expansion and the first project delivered through its London operation.
Nagata added: “Deauville has a particular quality of light, of memory, of refined leisure that you feel the moment you arrive,” explained Nagata. “Our role was not to impose a design upon it, but to listen carefully and give form to what was already there.”
Tags: Clint Nagata, BLINK Design Group, Guerlain
