2022 saw Vermilion undertake the refurbishment of the ‘Inn on the Pier’ pub on the Victorian Royal Pier in Aberystwyth. The client gave an open brief for the renovation and so lead designer James Blinkhorn focused on transforming the 1970's space with the concept of giving the illusion that its existence in its heyday of the early 20th century was being brought back to life.
James’ unique design work hit the spot for the client’s aim of reconstructing the ‘Inn on the Pier’ into the perfect pub experience with a visually intriguing backdrop. Taking the structure of the Victorian pier as a starting point, James developed an inspired design which reflected those aging structural facets such as cast iron girders, rivets and supporting columns, along with the weathering affects of the sea in the form of patinas, rust and verdigris. As a contrast, the ornate features synonymous with the gothic revival style of the pier’s pavilion were also an intrinsic element of the overall design.
The project encompassed mock metal structures to represent and reflect the pier’s exterior structure, plus floor, ceiling, fabric, wall and wallpaper design. With James being an artist and former illustrator, paintings and pictures were an important aspect of the design scheme. Reflecting the holiday destination that Aberystwyth is, vintage style travel posters were included in the form of framed pictures for the walls and were incorporated into the fabric design for the booth seating areas. Also, imagine if famous artists had visited Aberystwyth pier? How would they paint it? James also painted Van Gogh’s, Monet’s, Lowry’s and Toulouse Lautrec’s interpretations of it!
With nine months to complete the design, manufacturing and installation of the renovation and considering the highly detailed bespoke nature of the project, it was certainly a challenge but the Vermilion team delivered and the end result was successfully achieved. Take a look at the many features of the spectacular renovation which included stained glass lightboxes, custom made panels/fretwork/skirting boards/radiator covers, x8 wall/ceiling designed papers, x30 different seat fabrics for booth seating and refurbished cinema seats, custom designed tiles for the bar area, bespoke artwork and a new pub logo!
