Matt Woods Design and The Rabbit Hole

Australian designer Matt Woods has turned an industrial building into a tea bar. The Rabbit Hole – Organic Tea Bar in Sydney breaks with tradition for a bold visual identity in the interior.



Kintsugi - the Japanese art form recognizing beauty in broken things by joining them together again with a lacquer containing gold - is the keyword for the latest interior design project by award-winning Australian designer Matt Woods (we have already featured Greenheart Espresso).
Matt Woods took a disused industrial building, laid bare the concrete floor, stripped back the timber ceilings and brick walls, then offset the harshness with a whitewash and the addition of large northeast facing windows to flood the interiors with natural light.





In this context, the theme of Kintsugi is covered not only by the broken pottery used for the counter and kitchen entrance, but very artistically in the “Specialty Tea Display” where Kintsugi bowls created specifically by the designer are delicately balanced on top of oak timbers. A direct reference to why these bowls sometimes need to be glued together again.





The Rabbit Hole – Organic Tea Bar follows this narration of imperfection in wabi-sabi style, of which Kintsugi is an expression. Matt Woods has thereby come up with a rarefied and at the same time warm and welcoming feel, assisted by the light colours, simple materials and the large teabag chandelier hanging over the counter created by Chilean artist Valeria Burgoa.





We're a long way from the cliché of the pink, hushed English-style tearoom, as well as from the deliberately green aesthetic. Here, sustainability is part of every design decision - from the FSC-certified or recycled wood through to the VOC-free colours, LED - or energy-efficient - lighting and the eco-friendly footprint of every material used.



With The Rabbit Hole, Matt Woods again confirms how designers can really grasp the intimate spirit of a place by creating spaces beyond the rhetoric of trendy venues and green design.

Christiane Bürklein

Interiors - Matt Woods (@killingmattwoods   #mattwoodsdesign)
Photography - Dave Wheeler (@dave_wheeler)
Styling - Lucia B (@luciabstylist) 
Year: 2015
Location: Sydney – Australia