Hand-troweled plaster walls customised by NGID blend with plush furniture and marble features to give Perth’s Youth Lab a 1970s glam feel inspired by “luxury hotels” and the “private penthouses of New York’s Upper East Side”.

Eschewing the typical white and sterile environment commonly found in medical centres, NGID opted for the custom walls as a metaphor of the treatments applied at the clinic to “enhance the natural beauty of the face”.

The light grey is paired with a “rich Bordeaux colour” as a connecting thread throughout the spaces, which “tones beautifully” with the existing jarrah flooring.

“We looked quite closely at hotels in New York City as the penultimate in terms of luxury, heritage and prestige, and disseminated some of those concepts into our design,” explains NGID’s Nikolas Gurtler.

“For example, we wanted to create a welcoming yet impactful concierge experience in the lobby, and an almost parlour-like feeling in the waiting room.”

The clinic sits within a 1930s Heritage building, whose features are celebrated through the lead light front doors at the entrance.

Upon entering, clients are greeted by a custom-designed table covered in Jonathan Adler pottery as “a tongue-in-cheek nod” to the concept of beauty and vanity.

Lighting the reception is a Christopher Boots-designed pendant and Kelly Wearstler wall sconce, while the reception counter is made from “off-centre book-matched Calacatta Viola marble” in front of a custom corrugated and hand finished metal wall.

“We included this metal finish as a nod to a typical medical clinic material interpreted through a more high end lens,” explains Gurtler.

“It wasn’t something we’d seen before, but it turned out to be really spectacular.”

Moving through the space, the waiting room is designed to channel a “luxury townhouse”.

Smoked mirror panelling in NGID’s “signature pattern” acts a backdrop for artwork by Dina Broadhurst, which continues the theme of beauty and vanity.

A custom designed Acropolis table is paired with Pierre Paulin Pumpkin chairs from Ligne Roset, along with an art-silk rug and a sheer drapery.

More artwork by Dina Broadhurst sits atop the original fireplaces in Youth Lab’s treatment rooms, along with custom joinery and Calacatta Viola marble.

Christopher Boots lights in aged brass and alabaster stone feature in each. Their Y shape acting as a “subtle nod” to the Youth Lab branding.

“We really wanted the clinic to be somewhere the clientele could explore with all their senses, but in particular sight and touch,” concludes Gurtler.

“We wanted them to be curious as they wait for their treatments, running their hands over smooth stone or plush velvet or perhaps exploring the visual details we created.

“There’s also an air of luxury to the colour palette, a strength and beauty that is timeless with blacks, whites, golds and silvers punctuating throughout.”

While originally from Western Australia, Nickolas Gurtler founded NGID as a boutique studio based Melbourne, working across the residential, multi-residential, retail and hospitality sectors. 

Following last year’s bushfires, Gurtler also headed the Design Donated initiative, bringing together interior designers willing to lend their services pro bono to bushfire-affected communities.

Photography: Dion Robeson.