Sir Edwin Lutyens enjoyed working with bold colors. So does Martin Brudnizki, who recently completed the Coral Room (and nearby lounge) inside a Lutyens-designed building that now houses the Bloomsbury Hotel. “He probably would have gone with a black,” says Brudnizki, “but this coral is such a great color, and everyone looks good in it.” The landmark Neo-Georgian structure was built in 1932 as a YWCA. “You couldn’t touch anything,” says Brudnizki. “All you could do is paint.” He also points out that things need to reinvent themselves. What was once a women’s refuge serves a very different purpose now. “People walk in and think, ‘I’m going to have fun here.’ ”
The Coral Room by Martin Brudnizki Design Studio
London
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-01.jpg?t=1522420468&width=1080)
Photo © James McDonald
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-02.jpg?height=720&t=1522420486)
Photo © James McDonald
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-03.jpg?height=720&t=1522420502)
Photo © James McDonald
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-04.jpg?height=720&t=1522420519)
Photo © James McDonald
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-05.jpg?height=720&t=1522420539)
Photo © James McDonald
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-06.jpg?height=720&t=1522420567)
Photo © James McDonald
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-07.jpg?t=1522420583&width=1080)
Photo © James McDonald
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-08.jpg?t=1522420599&width=1080)
Photo © James McDonald
![The Coral Room](https://www.architecturalrecord.com/ext/resources/Issues/2018/April/Snapshot/1804-Martin-Brudnizki-Design-Studio-London-The-Coral-Room-09.jpg?height=720&t=1522420616)
Photo © James McDonald