Wes Anderson Designed Bar Opens in Milan

Filmmaker Wes Anderson has designed a bar in Milan and it’s exactly what an Anderson fan’s dream is made of.

Bar Luce, which opened on May 9, is part of the Fondazione Prada. The Fondazione is set in a reused distillery built in 1910. It was repurposed by Rem Kolhaas and his OMA team to create a complex of buildings, artistic and cultural exhibition spaces, kid’s play area and Bar Luce.

A report from CNN International Edition discusses how the bar is reminiscent of “The Grand Budapest” director’s imagined worlds. The report cited how Bar Luce makes a nod to several parts of Milan. One of its examples would be how the filmmaker took inspiration from the Galleria Vittorio Emanuelle II combined with a film set in an Italian neoliberal world. Anderson has also named two films where he got his inspiration from- “Miracolo a Milano” and “Rocco e I Suoi Fratelli” set in 1951 and 1960, respectively.

In Bar Luce's official website, Anderson was quoted saying, “It is for real life, and ought to have numerous good spots for eating, drinking, talking, reading, etc. While I do think it would make a pretty good movie set, I think it would be an even better place to write a movie. I tried to make it a bar I would want to spend my own non-fictional afternoons in.”

In Time’s feature of the Anderson-designed bar, it compared the décor to two other films by the directors. The two pinball machines that are set against the wall are based on the movie “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou and the short film “Castello Cavalcanti.” The latter film also served as Anderson’s inspiration for Bar Luce’s furniture pieces with its sea-foam green Formica furniture which also appeared on the set of Castello. Meanwhile, the wallpaper gives off the vibe of “The Grand Budapest Hotel.”