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When Asuncion-Berenguer, Inc. designed the showroom building for the Belle Grande Suites within a casino complex, they designed a building that was a departure from the conventional casino flavour. Unlike most casino structures, the Belle Grande Suites showroom sits crisply unadorned, its white thick-walled and randomly glazed geometric face makes like a modern jewel box. It sits beside the busy construction site where it has been built to showcase the casino hotel’s offerings.
The 700 sq m structure is shaped into a rectangular plan running along the major roadway. Half of this rectangle is lined with the hotel’s model units and sales offices while the other half is lined with the main showroom spaces, the interiors all of which were also designed by Asuncion-Berenguer, Inc. The seven meter tall building is stacked with two layers of walls and windows, with alternating strips of full height glazing and solid panels of varying widths.
The windows recess into the facade in varying widths and depths, creating a lively irregularity and a textural play on the building envelope. Inside, a double-volume space houses the main reception, project showroom, meeting rooms and lounge areas, washed with natural light that streams through the large windows and skylight.
The lounge areas extend out into a large outdoor deck used as an extension of the lounge space. Behind the showroom lie the various model units and the sales office. Asuncion-Berenguer, Inc’s creation of an understated yet stunning structure, defiant of the ‘glitzy’ conventions associated with casino aesthetics, looks to promote a new vision for casino design.