Where the Essence of Paris Meets the Spirit of Kyoto
At Fauchon Hotel Kyoto, the space is designed around the concept of contrasting and blending France—Paris—and Japan—Kyoto, reinterpreting materials, techniques, traditional crafts, and styles in a contemporary way. The four iconic colors of the hotel—white, black, gold, and Fauchon pink—are incorporated into various materials, furnishings, and artworks to express the hotel’s brand identity, creating a space where elements of both Paris and Kyoto coexist in both materials and color tones.
Throughout the hotel, numerous custom-made artworks are installed. During your stay, we invite you to take your time and fully appreciate the remarkable artworks and meticulous details found throughout the property.
Cherry Blossom Motif
Cherry blossoms, the flower most emblematic of Kyoto, harmonize beautifully with FAUCHON’s signature pink.Throughout the hotel, guests will discover motifs inspired by these blossoms in a variety of locations, creating subtle and elegant connections between the city’s iconic nature and the hotel’s distinctive design.
Entrance Ceiling
The stained-glass ceiling of FAUCHON Hotel Kyoto’s entrance, adorned with fully bloomed cherry blossoms, was created with the wish that every guest who steps inside and looks up can encounter the essence of spring in Kyoto. Inspired by petals dancing in a gentle spring breeze, this dreamlike scene is brought to life through intricate carving using several rare shades of pink glass sandblasted to perfection, and by embedding 50,000 Swarovski crystals, whose delicate sparkle evokes the glistening dewdrops on each petal. The installation captures the beauty of spring, as its colors cascade gracefully from above, enchanting all who behold it.
Entrance Wall
The Floral Corridor evokes dancing cherry blossoms, capturing the vibrancy of a city where the old and the new coexist through the textures of petals and embroidered patterns. FAUCHON Pink petals feature Western-style vertical motifs, while pale pink petals display Eastern hexagonal patterns. Brass petals are finished in an antique patina to highlight the beauty of aging, contrasting with their polished shine to express the dialogue between tradition and modernity.
Guest Floor Elevator Hall
The cherry blossom stained glass employs the same exquisite techniques as the entrance ceiling. Designed like a continuous series, the motifs evolve across each floor, creating the impression of petals gently cascading from the upper levels.
Guest Floor Corridor Sconce Lighting
This design is inspired by the graceful gesture of draping a kimono obi over the shoulder. Each cherry blossom motif is carefully cut from solid cedar wood using a fretsaw, then shaped into three-dimensional curves with bending techniques. The cherry blossom design, quintessentially Kyoto, allows the bracket lighting to glow like a traditional andon lantern, gently guiding light into the room.
Grand Staircase Handrail
The design depicts a phoenix spreading its wings, from which flowers cascade gracefully. The floral motifs are adapted from traditional Japanese patterns, while the wing sections take advantage of the curves achievable through ironwork. By incorporating the textures of materials and the nuances of techniques into these decorative elements, the piece is imbued with a profound sense of artistry and depth.
Artworks
Original artworks created exclusively for FAUCHON Hotel Kyoto are displayed throughout the property. Guests can enjoy these pieces not only in the guest rooms but also across the public areas.
Ceramic Artwork: “CERAMIC CIRCLE”
In the 10th-floor elevator hall, an impressive ceramic centerpiece featuring a vase commands attention. This piece is crafted by the eighth-generation Kiyomizu Rokkubei, a master of Kiyomizu-yaki pottery, a tradition that has flourished in Kyoto since the Edo period. The motif is the “circle,” embodying a powerful force that radiates both inward and outward, balancing centripetal and centrifugal energy within an ultimately simple form. During high-temperature kiln firing, the natural sag caused by gravity is meticulously controlled, allowing the subtle, organic curves to be incorporated into the design. The work aims to express a “more universal form.” Its surface is coated with a matte black glaze, emphasizing the sharp, precise lines and enhancing the artwork’s striking presence within the space.
Object Beside the Restaurant Sofa Seating
This porcelain artwork is crafted as if creating a bouquet from the fresh produce of a French marché. Featuring over ten types of ingredients—including zucchini, carrots, artichokes, eggplants, pumpkins, melons, cheese, mushrooms, currants, berries, and cactus fruit—the piece comprises more than 100 individual components. Each element is shaped using original techniques such as slip casting, hand modeling, and extrusion, then carefully glazed according to its type to highlight and enhance its unique characteristics. By fully harnessing the methods and expressive potential of ceramics, the work achieves a lively, joyful, and visually captivating design.
Ceramic Artwork: “White Impressions”
On either side of the entrance vestibule, ceramic works by artist Hiromi Itabashi are displayed. The artist’s fundamental approach is a continual exploration of methods to transform abstract concepts into tangible forms. He describes this particular piece as the realization of his desire to express the notion of “ascending ideas” in a simple and stylish form. Firing a 1,600 mm ceramic without distortion was made possible only through a unique technique devised by the artist. This work embodies the concept of “infinite ascent,” perfectly complementing the façade of FAUCHON Hotel Kyoto.
Monochrome Photograph Art
Photographs by Hiroto Morikawa, capturing the light and shadows of Kyoto’s landscapes and famous temples, are displayed on each floor. Despite being monochrome, their luminous presence forms the core of FAUCHON Hotel Kyoto’s artistic identity. Among the 88 works, the artist’s playful touch hides one photograph of his hometown and creative base, Kanazawa. It depicts the cherry blossoms along the dog run by Kanazawa Castle walls, beneath the stone fortifications, and alongside the moat—can you spot it?
Ink Painting Artwork on the Restaurant Wall
This artwork abstractly depicts the landscapes of Higashiyama. The artist represents the “Higashiyama” that emerges faintly from the “layers of human thoughts” through multiple layers of delicate ink wash gradients. The slow, repeated layering process accumulates the essence of the landscape over time. The millennia of Kyoto’s history and the mountain ridges observed across generations are reflected and juxtaposed against the view of Higashiyama seen through the windows, creating a dialogue between past and present.
Restaurant / Tea Salon / Bar
The restaurant and tea salon feature meticulously crafted design details. These elements not only create a setting for gourmet enjoyment but also delight and inspire guests’ aesthetic senses.
Restaurant Entrance
This is an art wall composed of a collection of squares, using both three-dimensional and flat elements to create a visually engaging effect. The interconnected squares evoke the grid-like streets of Kyoto and the rows of rooftops visible below. The composition of gold, black, silver, and white, combined with polished and matte finishes, achieves a classic yet modern expression. The metal components are crafted by traditional Kyoto hardware artisans specializing in gun fittings, with distinctive tetsunagi nails as a signature detail.
Kumiko Screen in the Corridor Beside the Tea Salon
The cherry blossom motif is one of the most popular designs among the many kumiko patterns. In Japanese tradition, the spirit of the rice deity resides within the cherry blossom, and the degree of bloom was once used to predict the year’s harvest, symbolizing prayers for abundance and prosperity. The cedar wood has been treated with a special aqueous solution to enhance its natural color. This process preserves the inherent beauty of the cedar, producing subtle, aged hues reminiscent of traditional tea rooms, creating a material that feels both timeless and harmonious with the ancient city of Kyoto.
Suspended Ceiling Art in the Restaurant
This piece embodies FAUCHON’s essence, expressing creativity rooted in tradition alongside contemporary originality that aims for the cutting edge. The elements are arranged in a sparkling pattern, reminiscent of bubbles in champagne.
Restaurant Chairs
While preserving the chair design used at FAUCHON in France, the upholstery incorporates purple Nishijin-ori textiles, evoking traditional Japanese aesthetics, creating a sense of exclusivity unique to Kyoto. The threads are dyed in a sophisticated burgundy red and combined with silver threads. The pattern cleverly integrates intricate kasumi (mist) motifs with arare (hail) motifs, resulting in a beautifully complex kasumi-arare design.
Special Lighting in the Tea Salon and Bar Area
The design features a composition reminiscent of stacked black lacquer boxes, with the illuminated sections made from textured Japanese washi paper. Even within the bar, the lighting creates an atmosphere that evokes the essence of Japanese aesthetics, achieving a harmonious blend of tradition and contemporary design.