design et al are delighted to announce that MQ Studio have been shortlisted for Hotel over 200 rooms – Asia Pacific Award in The International Hotel & Property Awards 2019.
To create a modern Malaysian hotel. This was achieved through the following strategies: firstly, there are two recurring themes within the design of The RuMa Hotel and Residences; the first is a contemporary interpretation of Malaysia’s Colonial past, the second is driven by the name of the hotel itself- that is RuMa(h), the Malay word for home. Therefore, the design and conceptual approach for the hotel has been informed by both these two themes – a home that captures, in spirit, the houses of a bygone era; however, unlike their ancestral past, The RuMa Hotel and Residences will remain resolutely domestic.
Secondly, amongst these main themes, other sub themes emerge and reveal themselves within the project, specifically referencing aspects of Malaysian culture and design. Inspiration for the hotel is derived from walking the streets of Kuala Lumpur, rummaging through the flea markets, to trawling through the internet and chatting to local Malaysians – all information is a potential source for an idea or inspiration for The RuMa Hotel and Residences.
The Ruma, does not strive to become a pastiche of its historical past. Convention is replaced with ‘invention’- to create a hotel that will be both contemporary but at the same time, strangely familiar- your new home in Kuala Lumpur.This is a hotel you discover. As you move through it, it is rich with local stories, both literal and implied. Combined with the service offering of ‘hostmanship’ the hotel is both comfortable and approachable- a place where you can truly relax within the heart of the city. The Ruma Hotel and Residences has truly become a modern Malaysian hotel. The hotel both references the past and connects to the modernity of Malaysia.
From the modern take on the traditional Malay clothing for the uniforms, to the interpretation of Malay food at the restaurant Atas, from the architectural decoration found in local flea markets that adorn the walls (antique balustrades are hung horizontally as art decoration) to the columns that adorn the entrance of the hotel taken from an old Malay house).