Hotel 5-star sup. "InterContinental Resort Berchtesgaden", Obersalzberg/ D
"Diamond-Award“, World travel award 2008 category: "Germanys leading resort", "Germanys leading spa"
23.000 sqm BGF, 138 rooms and (junior-) suites and presidential suite / 3 restaurants „360°“+ „Le Ciel“+ „Vinothek“/ American Bar „Rocks“ / Tealounge
Interior design: project management and art direction, design conception and revision room conception for the whole interior design, i.e. public areas, restaurants, bar, tea lounge, “winecube”, rooms, suites, presidential suite. Exclusive design for lamps (entrance hall, rooms, etc.), carpets, furniture and décor
Client: gewerbegrund GmbH/ Bayerische Landesbank
Projekt management: Drees&Sommer AG
Planned and completed 2001-2005
photos: © InterContinental Resort Berchtesgaden
The interior design of the five star mountain resort handles special challenges defining the first "Mountain Resort"-Hotel of InterContinental Group (IHG) hotel line and this particular place with a known history, the “Obersalzberg”.
Behncke takes a contextual approach: "The context is my source of inspiration, because I want to avoid anything fashionable and transitory. On the contrary, I want to create something unique that embeds itself exactly into its surroundings. To work in context, I first go to search for clues. In the case of the InterContinental Resort Berchtesgaden track search was very filtered because of the difficult location, because some tracks were ruled out immediately. About the research I came to individual elements which only fit just to this, the hotel and make the room feel unique. I discovered the typical traditional alpine huts in this area, for example. I incorporated such elements and put them in contrast to modern materials and forms. "
Another source of inspiration is the art. For the design theme of "Nature and human" in the InterContinental Berchtesgaden, it will be oriented by the works of the painter Otto Müller, who was persecuted “degenerate” by the Nazis and its color scheme, who put exactly this issue to the center of his work. For his play with the absurd, crazy proportions - about the size of the body in relation to the guests oversized lamps - "scaling" was instrumental for inspiration, as it is used by the theater director Robert Wilson and the architect Peter Eisenman.
So the oversized lampshades, the floating staircase and particular materials show an unusual interior.