Fendi House has renovated six historic salons of the Villa Medici in Rome
admin
Author
20 Dec 2022
Silvia Venturini Fendi and Kim Johnson from the fashion house Fendi worked on the new look of the six reception halls of the Villa Medici, including the luxurious Grand Salon
Villa Medici is a monument of Roman architecture, which stands on the slope of Pincho Hill near the famous Spanish Steps. In ancient times, this place was the famous gardens of Lucullus and the villa where the Roman Empress Messalina found her death. During the Renaissance, Cardinal Giovanni Ricci acquired this plot, which was overgrown by vineyards by that time, and ordered the construction of a luxurious palace here. The construction was delayed, and in 1576 the slope with the unfinished villa was acquired by the future ruler of Florence Ferdinando de' Medici, whose name it bears.
Photo
wikipedia.org
It was the first estate of the Medici family in Rome, which for several centuries was considered one of the most prestigious houses of the Eternal City. Nowadays, the villa is managed by the French Academy in Rome and fulfills three cultural missions: art residences for young artists, venues for cultural and artistic events and the popularization of the architectural and landscape heritage and art of the villa.
Photo
fendi.com
In the XX and XXI century, the villa underwent several restorations, the most capital of which was carried out in the 1960s, when many lost details of the interior were restored. And recently six historical salons were restored here, including the famous Grand Salon, a large—scale project to which the French Academy in Rome attracted the fashion house Fendi.
Photo
fendi.com
Photo
fendi.com
Photo
fendi.com
The project, developed by the creative directors of the House Kim Johnson and Silvia Venturini Fendi, is based on color. The original tones of the mural became the starting point when choosing a color palette for each room, which is reflected, among other things, in the design of three custom-made handmade carpets woven from recycled French wool.
Photo
fendi.com
Also, the key task of the authors of the project was to make friends with the historical heritage and decoration of the villa with modern furniture — the creations of designers, many of whom drew their inspiration from Roman history and architecture. For example, in the design of the Borghese table in the Salon des Pensionnaires ("Salon of Fellows") — the work of Frenchman Noah Duchofour-Laurence — you can see the outlines of the famous Roman pines, and in the ornament of the tables created by him specifically for Salon de Lecture ("Reading Salon") and Salon Bleu ("Blue Salon"), there is a drawing of the pavement of the ancient Appian Way.
Photo
fendi.com
Photo
fendi.com
The new decor of the halls enters into a dialogue with antique objects, geometric light objects by Richard Peduzzi and prints of casts of the XVIII century by the former participants of the Fellows program of the French Academy from its own collection.
Photo
fendi.com
This synthesis of historical heritage and modernity is complemented by works of art on the walls. Thanks to the partnership with Mobilier National, handmade tapestries by contemporary artists are presented in the interiors of Villa Medici. The works of Louise Bourgeois, Sheila Hicks, Aurelie Nemours, Alicia Penalba and Sonya Delaunay, Raoul Ubak, Edoardo Chilida and Patrick Corillon are side by side here with historical tapestries from the series "India" and the Quattro stagioni cycle "Four Seasons" based on sketches by Francesco Salviati from the collections of the Academy.
Photo
fendi.com
Before re-decorating the walls of the Grand Salon of the Villa Medici, the Quattro Stagioni tapestries were restored in the workshops of Bobin Tradition, which took two whole years. Also in the Grand Salon, the historical decor was restored and the sound equipment was upgraded. Acoustic panels specially designed for this project by Devialet were installed behind the tapestries, which allow to improve the acoustics in the hall without additional interventions.
1/3
Photo:
fendi.com
