Rome. The Eternal City. The luxury hotel ROMEO Roma has just opened in its historic fabric. The historic building featured a modern design by the famous Zaha Hadid Architects. How do the streamlined and dynamic shapes fit in with the architectural ornamentation and art? It is impossible to pass by this realisation indifferently!
The starting point for the hotel redevelopment project was the vaults and ornamentation from the Renaissance and Baroque periods and the 18th century. The designers decided to create a new version of the vaults and their intersections, so all the rooms and furniture were designed in accordance with this bold concept.
Hotel ROMEO Roma is located in the historic Palazzo Capponi building, which was purchased for this development back in 2012. The main part of the building dates back to the 16th century, but the last two wings were already built in the 1950s to house offices. At the time, there was a lack of awareness of what a valuable edifice the officials were staying in. The frescoes were painted over, but luckily they have now been uncovered and restored. Today they adorn the interior of the hotel.
The first conceptual work on the interior design was started by Zaha Hadid Architects in 2015. Even then, it was determined that as much of the valuable architecture and details as possible should be exposed.
From the reception area, visitors walk into the former courtyard, now obscured by a glass roof. From here, a restored grand staircase leads to the guest rooms. The appearance of the latter is varied. When the architects designed in the old building, they did not want to standardise the appearance of the suites, but to take advantage of the different room sizes, creating individual compositions. In total, there are 74 rooms in the hotels.
Some flats feature restored frescoes from the 17th century. Flats on the top floors have private terraces with panoramic views of the city. Vaulted ceilings of delicate brass circles accentuate the stone and ebony floors in the lobby.
The aforementioned inner courtyard was designed as a contemporary urban square. This space is the vibrant core of the hotel, where you can relax and unwind using the hotel’s bar or café. With designer furniture and artistic installations, the courtyard here is a kind of urban oasis that offers a reprieve from the bustling city.
photos: Jacopo Spilimbergo, Chris Dalton
source: zaha-hadid.com
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