Welcome architects, designers and readers!
Pyrolave is launching this newsletter to keep you informed, inspire your projects and perhaps offer a getaway together. In this first issue, enamelled lava stone from Volvic volcanoes is poised to take over America through a highly ambitious hotel project.

Moxy Hotels & Pyrolave:
success across the Atlantic

The prestigious Marriott hotel company, and specifically its Moxy Hotels targeting a young, trendy, and demanding clientèle, was looking to stand out through a unique material and design for its massive vanity basins, opting for Volvic enamelled lava stone.

In 2014, the iconic Marriott hotel company introduced a bold new brand: Moxy boutique hotels. These neo-chic establishments cater to the young, fast-paced travellers of today and tomorrow who thrive on technology. A perfect blend of quintessential American motels on the outside and ubiquitous down-to-earth modernity on the inside, there are now more than 15 Moxy Hotels worldwide. The internationally recognised agencies of Yabu Pushelberg, Rockwell Group and TAO Group designed the locations on 7th Avenue and on 28th Street in New York and the Moxy in Washington DC. The interior design, particularly in the guest rooms, stands out with massive Pyrolave lava stone vanity basins specially designed with the help of Yabu Pushelberg for the first two projects. The high-quality material and the one-of-a-kind expertise of Pyrolave completely won over everyone involved with the project and inspired their creativity. In total (and we’re only getting started!), more than 1000 units, in different models and colours – Caviar and two shades created from a colour palette requested by the architect, namely sky blue and khaki green – were designed, customised and hand-made in Pyrolave’s workshops in the heart of Occitania in France. These vanity tops are designed to reinvent the hospitality business, with their massive lava stone block, worked into a curved design and supported by a tubular anthracite metal structure, creating a neo-chic industrial look.

A peek behind the scenes of the project :
Made in France craftsmanship

From Volvic quarries to Pyrolave’s workshop in south of France and finally installed in NYC and Washington DC, let’s take a look at how an international project adopts expert French craftsmanship..

Pyrolave was able to pique curiosity and win over famous American architects to create the interior design of three Moxy hotels, located on 7th Avenue and on 28th Street in New York and in Washington DC, of which the last two are scheduled to open at the end of the year.

Offering a truly distinctive element in each and every room, the vanity tops were designed by the internationally renowned Yabu Pushelberg design agency from a block of raw lava. Carved in Volvic quarries and then shaped and enamelled by the masters at Pyrolave, these rounded design elements include an offset and a chamfered recess.

Several prototypes were necessary before achieving the final design. Tests performed by the R&D department and the design office focused on the bottom of the basin and the corners. The recess was tested to guarantee maximum product strength. Multiple versions were developed and approved to suit all of the room layouts and for use by persons with reduced mobility.

The colour Caviar – a grey colour originally requested by the architect from the Pyrolave range – was selected for the Moxy locations on 7th Avenue and in Washington DC. The special colour palette offered by Pyrolave produced two shades for the massive lava stone vanity tops at the Moxy on 28th Street. The tests were also important for the colour so as to prevent run-off from the enamelling in the marked corners of the pieces included in this project. The complex manual process of applying enamel to the stone was tested several times before arriving at the desired result. At Pyrolave, the secret of successful, high quality enamelling lies in the use of experienced craftsmen, the selection of enamel, its method of application and the firing curve of the finished product.

After this prototyping phase, the small run of basins was fired in an oven at 1000°C. Twelve hours later, the enamelled lava revealed its full beauty in the Pyrolave workshops.

For these projects, of which the first amounted to enough units for the company to “mass” produce, there were 600 Volvic enamelled lava basins for the Moxy on 7th Avenue, nearly 350 for the hotel on 28th Street, and 200 for the Moxy in Washington DC, all produced within very short deadlines. Pyrolave had a dedicated set-up throughout the production cycle and created custom wooden boxes the size of the hotel windows for easier transport and installation on site.

A beautiful story… with many chapters for Pyrolave, who recently gained another hotel in the chain. The story continues on 11th Street in the heart of Manhattan!