How El Ghoneimi International Found Colour in The Gray

The Egyptian Mediterranean has its own material palette in summer. Azure water, pale sand, chalky limestone, woven palm, linen and bleached timber.

Rather than reproducing these familiar coastal motifs, El Ghoneimi International distilled them into something more abstract for The Gray Hotel, the new boutique property at The Med by People & Places on Egypt's North Coast, where Alchemy's architecture sets the stage for El Ghoneimi's interiors. The project also marks the Egyptian debut of Campbell Gray Hotels, extending a hospitality story that began with Le Gray Beirut, the brand's flagship hotel, and has long been defined by properties shaped by their surroundings.

That philosophy made El Ghoneimi International a natural fit for bringing this sense of place into the interiors. Since 1983, the studio has approached hospitality through the lens of place rather than style. Its portfolio spans the restoration of Sofitel Legend Old Cataract Aswan, Hilton Aqueduct in Old Cairo, Moxy Cairo Lazoghly, Dusit Thani Al Khobar in Saudi Arabia and the hospitality components of Maspero Triangle. Diverse in geography and character, the projects share the conviction that every destination demands its own architectural response.

"The coast already has a strong identity," says Shadi El Ghoneimi, Partner and Head of Design at El Ghoneimi International. "Our role wasn't to recreate it literally. It was to understand what makes it feel unmistakably Egyptian, then reinterpret those qualities through space, material and colour."

Rather than borrowing the familiar vocabulary of coastal hospitality, the concept draws on the changing quality of light across Mediterranean arches, where the same surface shifts throughout the day with the angle and warmth of the sun. That dialogue between light and shadow informs the material palette, architectural detailing and spatial composition of the hotel.

That thinking shapes a series of interiors that move from expressive to intimate without ever losing their coherence. Continuity comes through colour, proportion and materiality rather than repetition, allowing each space to establish its own identity while remaining part of a considered whole.

Arrival begins beneath a sculptural lighting installation that establishes the hotel's tone from the outset. Bespoke flooring quietly guides movement through the public spaces, while residential-inspired reception desks soften the ritual of arrival. The Library Lounge, all-day dining restaurant and lagoon-facing terrace each introduce a distinct mood before giving way to the quieter residential character of the guest rooms, where framed views, tactile materials and restrained bursts of colour replace the energy of the public spaces.

Rather than functioning as decoration, commissioned artworks and sculptural interventions punctuate the interiors with moments of discovery, reinforcing the dialogue between architecture and its Mediterranean setting.

"The design isn't about filling a room. It's about creating an atmosphere people remember, even if they can't immediately explain why," El Ghoneimi tells SceneHome.

Reflecting pools and layered planting introduce another level of restraint. Water tempers the visual confidence of the interiors, while mature trees and native planting soften the threshold between architecture and landscape, allowing the surrounding environment to become part of the composition rather than simply its backdrop.

Like the landscape beyond it, The Gray changes with the passing of the day. As the coastal light shifts, so too does the perception of its materials, colours and textures. It is less a static composition than a building in constant conversation with its surroundings.