As dance music culture experiences a global resurgence, the design of nightclubs, restaurants, and entertainment venues is receiving renewed attention, with DJ booths emerging as central focal points in these spaces. A new design lookbook showcases eight unique DJ booth installations from around the world, featuring everything from mirrored metallic surfaces to giant disco balls, demonstrating how these musical command centers have evolved into architectural statements.
The collection highlights how DJ booths now serve as mini-gathering hubs within larger entertainment spaces, keeping patrons engaged and creating dynamic visual centerpieces. These installations span from Japan to Australia, showcasing diverse materials including wood, metal, and innovative lighting solutions that enhance both acoustic performance and aesthetic appeal.
In Brooklyn's Williamsburg neighborhood, the Unveiled nightclub by Studio MBM features a striking metallic DJ booth located in the basement of the William Vale hotel. The semi-circular VIP area sits behind a smooth, mirrored booth bathed in blue lighting, while the surrounding dance floor walls are clad in hammered metal, creating a cohesive industrial aesthetic.
Sydney's JAM Record Bar by Akin Atelier pays homage to Tokyo's mid-century listening bars with walls lined with 15,000 vinyl records. The intimate DJ booth, tucked into a nook at the bar's end, is clad in pink plywood that matches the rest of the interior, creating a cohesive retro atmosphere that celebrates vinyl culture.
In Valencia, Spain, Clap Studio designed the Oven techno club to literally feel like an oven, featuring red and black Alpi wood walls with a distinctive rippled burl pattern climbing up the interior. The central DJ booth is clad in stainless steel, strategically chosen to reflect the club's warm-toned lighting and enhance the heated atmosphere.
Brooklyn's Public Records recently expanded its Gowanus complex with the Nursery, an outdoor music venue featuring a DJ booth cleverly integrated into a shipping container. Designed by local studio Space Exploration, the booth's minimal interior is flanked by two large teal speakers created by audio studio OJAS, demonstrating how industrial elements can be repurposed for entertainment venues.
The Bursa Bar in Kyiv, Ukraine, designed by Nastia Mirzoyan, showcases a more sophisticated approach within the boutique Bursa Hotel. The wood-lined bar features a DJ booth clad in the same dark wood as the surrounding restaurant, while a distinctive mossy green latticed ceiling was installed specifically to improve acoustic performance.
Seattle's Supernova nightclub by Mutuus Studio takes a bold approach with a massive disco ball DJ booth measuring eight feet in diameter. Covered entirely in mirrored tiles, this spherical installation conceals a semicircular desk for DJ equipment while creating a dramatic light-reflecting centerpiece that embodies classic disco aesthetics.
In Tokyo, Schemata Architects transformed a 1980s bathhouse called Koganeyu by adding a central bar designed to convert into a DJ booth for events. This adaptive design allows the modernized bathhouse to attract new visitors while maintaining its traditional function, demonstrating innovative dual-purpose architectural solutions.
San Francisco's Side A restaurant by Studio Ahead features a custom aluminum DJ booth positioned next to the bar against a wall of vinyl records. Studio Ahead co-founder Elena Dendiberi explained their vision: "Our intent was for design, music, and the culinary arts to come together in a hub for the creatives of the neighborhood," highlighting how DJ booths can serve as cultural gathering points beyond pure entertainment venues.
These diverse installations demonstrate how contemporary designers are elevating DJ booths from functional necessities to architectural focal points, incorporating various materials, lighting solutions, and spatial configurations that enhance both the musical experience and the overall venue atmosphere.
