Project at Newbury Street Salon Takes on an Artistic Tone

AT SALON MARIO RUSSO ON BOSTON’S Newbury Street, life imitates art and art imitates life. While stylists shape creative coiffeurs, architects and builders have been busy constructing a unique and artistic space that is both aesthetically appealing and fully functional.

Working within an established space, those involved had to be creative with their design and execution plans, all while the salon remained fully operational. As scissors snipped, the salon doubled in space from nearly 2,000 square feet to 4,000 square feet.

The fast-track expansion, which broke ground on Jan. 1 of this year, involved moving up to additional space found directly above the original location, on the fourth floor of 9 Newbury St., an area that once contained offices.

The space now boasts a wax room, break room, color mixing stations, two pedicure stations, five hair washing stations, manicure stations, 12 coloring stations and an office space.

The different areas were all separate facets of a larger environment in order to create individual enclaves within a communal atmosphere.

“The idea was to have a big, public room and then the question was ‘how do you shrink-wrap individual spaces?’” said Nader Tehrani, principal partner of Boston-based Office dA Inc., who designed the project. The answer is in the details, it seems. The 12 hair color stations were built in a zigzag configuration in order to “give a semblance of your own space,” Tehrani said. Another example is the manicure area.

Tables are placed next to the wall and separated from the rest of the room by a beaded shimmer screen privacy curtain, which gives the effect of separation without isolation. Transforming the room into its current manifestation provided designers and builders with a long list of challenges.

“Building from the ground up is in some ways a lot easier than working with an existing building. Here, in a project like this, it’s like you’re doing surgery to insert your ideas. It has all sorts of complications,” said Tehrani. “The hardest thing here was planning around plumbing and vents. Part of the idea was to not let the technical and logistical elements take over the design, but it was a stubborn space to work with.”

‘A Gallery Atmosphere’

Ultimately, those involved with the project worked around and with the difficulties they found, including incorporating a vertical vent into the project design and using Imago wall paneling, a translucent material that works to extend the reach of natural light.

One of the most basic elements of the construction process proved to be one of the biggest hassles.

“The hardest part of the whole project was getting the equipment in through the narrow staircase and the tiny elevator. We had to bring a crane in and pop a window,” said Kevin Randall, the superintendent with Needham-based Nauset Construction Corp., the general contractor. “Every job has its issues, but it all kind of fell into line and everything worked out smoothly.”

Daily phone calls, weekly meetings and “proactive communication” between the project team, owner and neighbors no doubt contributed to the lack of hang-ups on site. For instance, expansion to the fourth floor involved saw cutting through a concrete slab in order to construct a staircase. Salon
Mario Russo’s neighbor, the Ritz-Carlton Boston, was alerted weeks in advance and elected not to rent certain rooms in order to minimize the disturbance.

Owner and stylist Mario Russo was also very involved in the concept and constructio of the expansion.

“[Mario Russo] is not a very passive client. He’s very detail-oriented and he played a very big role,” said Tehrani, who noted that Russo’s vision for the addition was always incredibly clear. “Art is a very large part of this project. The way he thought about it was as a gallery atmosphere.”

In order to further perpetuate that image, the fourth floor is decorated with the work of local artist Jeff Perrott, whose featured pieces involve bands of color and the use of bright, bold numbers. Other artistic touches include an authentic Murano Venetian glass chandelier and a wall cut out in the shape of a syringe, which will soon be filled with Mario Russo salon products.

The gallery concept will soon filter down into the third floor, in an effort to create continuity and further the space’s connection to art.

“Mario would like to slowly phase out what has been done downstairs. We’re rebranding the space, getting rid of the old identity and positioning this as a gallery space,” said Tehrani. “If you just look around you, it all comes together. Even something like the way the colors are displayed
at the coloring station. Everything in here has a relationship to art. That was the idea. That was the goal.”