Pin-Up Bowl

Entertainment Facility
First Place
Kiku Obata & Co., St. Louis

At this St. Louis bowling alley/martini lounge, designers were challenged with creating a popular destination point for fun and relaxation that doesn't imitate any one style or era. Inspired by classic art deco elements, but with modern graphics and materials, the overall look is at once familiar and entirely unique. The 10-by-26-foot exterior neon sign features two imaginary pin-up characters – Camille and Antonio – alongside a bowling ball, a pair of bowling pins and martini glasses.

Inside, a bar and adjacent red wraparound banquettes offer a cozy place to relax and sip martinis between games. Here, a table with bowling-pin legs and the owner's personal collection of vintage pin-up posters on the walls reinforce the venue's dual theme. Wood display fixtures are a neutral backdrop for the colorful bowling balls, pool-table cues, shoes and other related merchandise – some of which features Camille and Antonio. Velvet draperies add sophistication to the space, while high-tech elements, such as large-format video displays, plasma screens, a digital jukebox and a first-class sound system, ensure a good time for a hip, contemporary crowd.

Client: Joe Edwards, St. Louis

Design/Architect: Kiku Obata & Co., St. Louis
Kiku Obata
Kevin Flynn
Dennis Hyland
Rich Nelson
Eleanor Safe
Jef Ebers
Mel Lim-Keylon
Lisa Bollmann
Carole Jerome
Todd Owyoung
Amy Knopf

General Contractor: ISC Contracting, St. Louis

Structural Engineering: KPFF Consulting Engineers, St. Louis
Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing, Fire Protection, Civil Engineering
William Tao & Associates, St. Louis

Illustrator: Joe Keylon, San Diego

Lighting: Lithonia Lighting, Conyers, Ga.
Eureka, Toronto
Halo Lighting, Peachtree City, Ga.
Ardee Lighting, Shelby, N.C.
Focal Point, Chicago
Metalux, Houston
Tech Lighting, Skokie, Ill.

Furniture Fabric: Designtex, New York

Draperies: Woodart Contract LLC, St. Louis

Carpet: Lee's Carpet, Greensboro, N.C.

Millwork: Woodbyrne, St. Louis

Ceiling Tile: US Gypsum, Chicago

Tile: Crossville Porcelain, Crossville, Tenn.

US Ceramic Tile Co.: Signage/Graphics
Engraphix, St. Louis

Audio: Technical Productions Inc., St. Louis

Photography: Jon Miller, Chicago