all design studio completes hidden 'lieben' bar in shanghai

ALL DESIGN STUDIO’S architectural treasure hunt FOR lieben bar

rather than advertise this mysterious shanghai drinking spot with large signage, all design studio decided to rely purely on word of mouth and social media.

lieben bar occupies the second floor of an existing building and the journey inside begins with a solid concrete wall. along the wall, there’s a fake door where keen clientele can take a glimpse inside the bar from the peephole. the real door is just in front of the fake one, somehow hidden but not too difficult to find.

the fake door

images by yuuuunstudio

THE CONCEPT OF THE DOOR

the concept of lieben bar is all about the door. all design studio analyzed the relationship between the door and space, and discussed its deeper meaning to people. the designers then disassembled, reorganized, and enlarged door elements and integrated them into the interior so that the space has both direct expression and abstract deconstruction. ‘explore — immerse — return, lieben presents a diverse journey for urbanites. we need a door to escape and a door that we are constantly looking for,’ explains all design studio.

the name of the bar comes from german band rammstein’s song, ‘was ich liebe’, with ‘lieben’ being the verb for ‘love’ in german. the idea is that customers will enjoy their experience even more so because of the effort involved to find the door.

the real door to lieben bar

entering lieben is like stepping into a secret base

for the interiors, all design studio continues the door motif and uses materials such as rusted iron, concrete and black leather. from the entrance door, customers are greeted by a concrete corridor clad in rusted iron with a row of keys on one side that extends to the lobby.

the lobby then opens up to the main space of lieben, the culmination of this treasure hunt. the bar counter utilizes suspended wooden beams while underneath it are eight spliced concrete doors, which were sourced from a flea market then covered with cement.

the row of keys along the entrance corridor

small circular tables and stools populate the center of the room while black leather seating can be found to the right-hand side and in a booth area opposite the bar counter. the wall above the booth is made from seven deconstructed concrete doors. to the right-hand side of the bar, wall lamps above the leather seats echo the peephole of the fake door. the interiors also include rusty mirrors that and extend the space and reflect the soft lighting.

‘we see the whole design is filled with rugged materials and clean lines, it embodies minimalism and german industrial style. the orange interior lighting and comfortable leather seats, while expressing broad and powerful feeling, it also reflects the delicate craftsmanship and soft lighting’, say the designers.

the corridor that leads into the main bar space

the lighting for lieben bar is soft, creating an overall dark and mysterious atmosphere. key elements such as the bar counter and the deconstructed doors are highlighted with well-placed perimeter lighting.

lieben also boasts an outdoor terrace that echos the interiors with rusty iron cladding and concrete. the terrace is shrouded by the canopy of trees from the street below. there’s also an outdoor art installation in the shape of a star called ‘spotlight’. inspired by venus at dawn, the artwork speaks of hope and new vitality.

the main bar space

the door motif is repeated throughout the design

black leather seating adds to lieben’s dark, mysterious look

bifold doors lead to an outdoor terrace

the outdoor art installation called ‘spotlight’

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project info:

name: lieben bar

location: 2nd floor, building 1, no. 758 julu rolad, jing’an district, shanghai, china
design firm: all design studio

supervisor: overeem hou / olivia yao

design director: gnial liang

construction: j-decor contracting co. ltd.

area: 160 sqm

year: 2021

rendering: visual wang studio

photography: yuuuunstudio

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynne myers | designboom