OEO Studio has designed interiors that blend Japanese and Nordic craft with the natural world, for Noma’s ten-week residency at Kyoto’s Ace Hotel.

The restaurant, which is based in Copenhagen, has transported its entire staff to the city in time for Hanami – the Japanese tradition of admiring the clouds of cherry blossom that appear in late March. At their temporary new home, staff will serve food in a restaurant space that feels more like a gallery, housing dozens of hand-crafted pieces as well as objects from nature.

OEO Studio collaborated with interior stylist and set designer Christine Rudolph on the design, which embraces an inky colour palette that’s set off by the bright green of the gardens outside. Visitors enter the popup, which is on the third floor of the hotel, via a Noren curtain designed by 101-year-old artist Samiro Yunoki, who’s known for his graphic, dyed works.

Tableware is made by both Japanese and Danish designers, while suspended artworks hark back to Noma’s trademark ingredients – for example the ceiling piece in textiles made from kelp. The pop-up is open until 20 May, and will use ingredients from local farmers, hunters, fishmongers and foragers for a menu that will ‘reflect’ Kyoto’s sakura season.

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