Lighting up the Present in a Historic Building
Past and present are connected by a drawbridge, symbolic but also physical.
Here, the bridge belongs to a historic mansion that has been guarded for centuries by generations of Salento noble families and, following painstaking restoration by Davide Russo and Stefano Santoro of Artea Design – overseen by client Serena De Ronzi, it is now an integral part of a modern resort called Nohasi Palace along with a 15th-century tower that was once a fortress of love, aristocratic courtyards and an underground mill that is still imbued with its ancient aromas. In this mill, the traditional millstone and oil settling tanks have been restored, providing a precious vestige of bourgeois life.
Inside Nohasi Palace, time seems suspended, allowing guests to bask in the here and now, enjoying the coffee bar, restaurant, elegant rooms, gardens (ideal for ceremonies and events), the wellness center with a pool and sun deck, and the tasting areas for traditional food, wine and brandy from the Puglia region of southern Italy. The upper floor of the mansion even houses a more economic, so to speak, food option: the historic culinary workshop, filled with family secrets, wisdom and the patience needed at the stove.
The heart of the piano nobile, around which one finds three of the resort’s most sophisticated suites, is a literary lounge adorned with a grand piano and expansive sofas that provide a comfortable place for reading. In this part of the complex, as in other sections, light plays a central role in drawing guests into the history of place. For example, the 16-sphere pendant lamps designed by Il Fanale were conceived hand in hand with the customer and add sophistication to every environment. They are a truly customized solution for this project, found in various rooms, the coffee bar, the restaurant and the Aroma reception room.
Il Fanale began life as a small artisan workshop in the outskirts of Treviso and it has fostered the importance of unique, customized Made in Italy products ever since, using upmarket materials including copper, brass and iron. This approach is evident in the wall lamps, such as the Quadro and Fior di Pizzo collections, the latter with classic embroidery, and brass and Bassano ceramic finishes. It also epitomizes the indoor floor lamps, particularly those in the Molecola and Typha series. The latter, as the name suggests, is inspired by the plant, replicating the shape in the brass stems ending in a LED light encased in tubular glass.
The outdoor lighting solutions are also the work of Il Fanale, but this time with the Borgo and Lanterna collections: the former, made of aged copper and brass, symbolizes the company’s craftsmanship; the latter has an oriental-inspired candle effect that really makes it the star of the external spaces. These aspects all make Nohasi Palace an outpost of noble beauty from another age.
IL FANALE
Via Bredariol Olivo, 15 – I – 31048 San Biagio di Callalta (TV)
T. +39 0422 895200
E-mail: [email protected] – www.ilfanale.com