Hotel Orania.Berlin: A house full of contrasts
In the midst of the up-and-coming Berlin district of Kreuzberg, the Hotel Orania.Berlin opened just over a year ago. The building in the middle of the Oraniaplatz was completed in 1912. After numerous changes of ownership in the past hundred years, the Orania seems to have arrived. In 2014, Dietmar Mueller-Elmau took on the house and developed a concept for a boutique hotel with 41 hotel rooms, a literary salon and a gourmet restaurant. In almost every part of the hotel wood from Danzer can be found, which Dietmar Mueller-Elmau and I have selected together in the Danzer showroom in Grödig near Salzburg.
The wood - as diverse as the guests
Like no other Berlin district, Kreuzberg stands for diversity, for the meeting of different cultures. “This variety was translated into the interior design of the hotel”, as Dietmar Mueller-Elmau explains the basic idea behind his interior concept, which is based on three pillars: fire, light and the guest. In the Orania’s chimneys real fire is burning, the light stands for the contradiction of the materials. The variety of the wood species and where they come from represents the diversity of the district as well as the origin and personality of the guests. The Orania.Berlin is open to all and celebrates their diversity. For the decor of his hotel Schloss Elmau in Bavaria, Mueller-Elmau already trusted in wood from Danzer. “I am a regular customer. The Danzer showroom in Grödig fascinated me on my first visit. When I worked on the concept for the Orania’s interior design, I knew it had to be wood from Danzer.“ When Mr. Mueller-Elmau first talked about his hotel project I immediately recognized his exciting and inspiring approach to interior design that also inspires us here at Danzer.
Mix and match as a recipe for success for the Orania
In the frame of the beds, the smooth, calm Cherry meets the lively, contrasting Santos Rosewood. It is this contrast, the mixture of different wood species that shows that every element in the rooms is handpicked. The variety continues in the restaurant, where bright Lacewood meets the darker European Walnut at the counter, which Dietmar Mueller-Elmau has selected for the tables. His American counterpart, the American Walnut, can also be found in the rooms. “I do not know a hotel in which more different species of wood are used than here in the Orania - that makes us unique,” says Dietmar Mueller-Elmau. Accompanying a project like the Hotel Orania from the beginning is especially rewarding for us. To experience the unique presentation of our products in a hotel like the Orania gives us great pleasure.
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About the Author
General Manager & Head of Sales, Danzer Veneer Europe
Walter Mooslechner is an enthusiast for the material wood with all its positive qualities since his childhood. During countless walks with his father, a forester, he learned to perceive the forest as a valuable resource, to understand and appreciate wood as a sustainable, intelligent material from an early age on. After graduating from a wood technology school, focused on business administration, wood industry and sawing technology, he started his professional career in 1992 which brought him to Danzer in 2002. Walter Mooslechner lives with his family at Lake Wolfgang in Salzburg. He recharges his batteries during extended hikes through the forests and mountains in the region.