Pop Palace
Photography by Nathan Harmon
“Lady Gaga inspired the design,” Bruce Taylor says with a laugh when describing the penthouse Celebrity Suite located in downtown Tulsa’s Aloft hotel.
Taylor, a partner of TOCH, LLC, was part of the team that spearheaded the purchase and renovation of Tulsa’s previous City Hall.
“The entire building was gutted to the four exterior walls,” including all electrical and plumbing, says Taylor.
The penthouse floor was carved into four Celebrity Suites, with Taylor’s two-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath being the smallest at 2,000 square feet.
“It had been the conference room and part of the mayor’s office,” he explains.
And while it is leased at rates up to $3,500 per night – Weird Al was a recent occupant – Taylor uses it when he is in town.
As Taylor was contemplating the design, it happened that Lady Gaga was performing at the nearby BOK Center.
“So I thought, ‘What kind of space would Lady Gaga want to stay in?’” he says.
His goal was to create an environment she would not have seen in Los Angeles or New York. The result is a sophisticated, contemporary space with a mid-century influence incorporating high-end finishes and furnishings along with cutting-edge technology.
The entire space uses only LED lighting. And while it is not a surprise that all the window coverings throughout the suite are remote controlled, the seemingly plain glass panels in the master bedroom separating the space from the master bath are state-of-the-art “smart glass.” The technology is known as electrochromatic glass, and a wireless control can change clear glass to opaque, with a variety of privacy options in between, in seconds.
The drawers in the master bath and the dining room appear to be typical cabinetry, but touch a drawer and it opens electronically, while another touch automatically closes it. What doesn’t require any touch at all – at least with your hands – is Kohler’s Numi toilet in the master bath. A remote controls the bidet and heated dryer, heated seat, foot warmers, the seven ambient colors, opening and closing of the lid as well as flushing. There is a television in the shower, and camouflaged behind one of the two mirrors in the master bath is a television that can only be seen when turned on.
For procuring most of the furnishings, accessories and artwork, Taylor relied on his two daughters, Tiffany Taylor and Brittany McColley Taylor, owners of Scout Design Studio, a 15,000-square-foot warehouse and showroom in the Dallas Design District. Their focus on Mid-century Modern was a perfect match for the project.
The open living room, dining room and kitchen are laid with 36-by-36-inch pieces of granite slab, each weighing around 400 pounds, installed using a laser for perfection. The oval room that pierces the living room ceiling is a guest bathroom that was labeled “Lady Gaga’s bathroom” on the architectural plans. The Italian tile used throughout the space took a craftsman months to install piece by piece. Inside the guest bath, rows of platinum tile glisten around the room.
Lady Gaga would surely enjoy a stay here.
