Red-painted timber and metal contrast with jade terrazzo in Piraña, a bar and restaurant in Balham, London, created by design studio Sella Concept.
The venue is owned by brothers Alastair and Nicholas Heathcote, who have set up a number of successful bars and restaurants across the UK capital in the past five years.

Sella Concept designed the space to have a casual and easygoing atmosphere, avoiding cliched references to South American culture.
To do this, studio founders Tatjana von Stein and Gayle Noonan eschewed the soft, warm colours and traditional patterns that are typically associated with the region. They instead opted for a bold, retro theme, with banquette seating and signage reminiscent of a 1950s diner.

Renovating with the shell of a former restaurant, Sella Concept worked directly with the building contractor to subdivide the space into different areas, each with a subtly different mood. However, the designers were careful to ensure that there were no divisions between diners and drinkers. "We are both fascinated by the psychology of behaviour behind design and the question of how to encourage behaviour through layout, design and materials ? what design makes us feel," said Sella Concept's Tatjana von Stein.

"Our favourite projects are those that allow us to answer one question: how can we transport an audience"" she continued.
"The design concept began by developing an understanding of how people will use the overall space,...