Design DNA
Most hotel operators, especially those in the hospitality world, are known for touting the word revolutionary. Revolutionary new designs, services, offerings, and amenities are all the rage in the PR buzz word dictionary for hoteliers today. Is Wynn Palace Design revolutionary?
Wynn Palace Design
Not Revolution But More Subtle Evolution
But I’ve often maintained while that is nothing explicitly bad, a certain level of design starts to show not revolution but more subtle evolution. At least today, in casino hospitality, this word is confined to one name in my mind…Wynn.
In the first three parts of his live telling of experiencing the opening of Wynn Palace, baccarat_guy has shown us glimpses of many different things through the different areas of the hotel.
The casino, the rooms, the VIP (nee Tower Suites-Esque) check-in, and more. And though each of these pieces, one thing has become evident; this is not just another slight step of evolution like one saw from Wynn to Encore.
It’s important to understand that this article was originally published shortly after Wynn Palace’s opening in August 2016. This is a few years before the next Wynn property to be launched, Encore Boston Harbor.
New Species With All The DNA
Wynn Palace is a full-blown new species with all the DNA of Wynn’s hotels dating back to even, one would argue, the Golden Nugget in Atlantic City. (Referring to the original Golden Nugget on the southern end of the boardwalk in Atlantic City.)
My evidence is honest and self-evident to those of us who are Wynn design fans. In the pictures above of the corridor and the casino, there are already bits and pieces of many things. The circle in a rectangle motif of Bellagio is made over as a gold accent. The Garden Trellis pattern on the wall and the ceiling.
All things that have been seen before but never executed in such a muted color palette that still evokes pure luxury, arguably more so than the Todd Avery Lenahan villas at Encore. The result is warm, welcoming, and signature Wynn down to the specifically floral themed version of his signature red carpet and hand-blown chandeliers.
Wynn Palace Color Palette
But what is singularly the most evolved here at Wynn Palace is the color palette. His past hotels have had mostly muted rich color schemes with pops of color; that idea is shattered all over the floral themed resort. Take, for example, the Ferris Wheel, a creation in a rainbow of flowers and the room it is in. Here, the art is the color, and the architecture becomes a container for taking that color and amplifying it.
A Wynn Hallmark
Mirrored walls and the same diamond grid that’s a Wynn hallmark create a space that takes the colored creation at its center. It reflects it all around, culminating in a whimsical ceiling that almost makes it like being inside a small yet gorgeous carnival. If Wynn were to build a circus tent, this would be it.
And beyond that, there’s no fear of color. Bright orange, teal, red, gold, and many others all mesh across the property to create a fanciful colorful feeling of being inside an architectural jewel box that contains every rich color you can imagine, all worn perfectly in balance by someone who understands how understated and overstated, in the right combination, can blow one’s mind.
I cannot wait to see what else is in store as the exploration of Wynn Palace progresses, and I am assured that one thing will continue to ring true. Just when I’ve given up on leaps of change, Wynn and the D&D team has blown me away yet again.
Note: This article was originally published on 25 August 2016, shortly after Wynn Palace’s opening. This was before the opening of Encore Boston Harbor in June 2019. This article was updated in January 2021.
