CITIES OF THE MONTH / December
Words by Olga Dolina / Publicity photos
The Rooms of Rome
Fly to
ROME
28
Rome
€ 129
from
round trip
Dorell.Ghotmeh.Tane/Architects
LIGHT is TIME , 2014
Metal and Led plates,
Site-specific work created in collaboration with Citizen Watch Co. Ltd.
/ airBaltic.com
When travelling to Rome, forget the usual hotels.
The Rooms of Rome is a special accommodation
experience where the aesthetical pleasures of
history, architecture, design, and art blend into
one personalised story. The 24 tailor-made, fully
equipped, and differently configured boutique
apartments created by world-famous architect Jean
Nouvel and the Fondazione Alda Fendi-Esperimenti
occupy the Palazzo Rhinoceros arts hub in the
ancient Velabro area. In a sincere homage to Roman
history, the interiors still retain fragments of rough
and shabby walls or tiles that strike a contrast with
the elegant modernity of concrete and mid-century
modern furnishings. The ground floor is reserved
for art exhibitions, while the fourth floor and
rooftop terrace house the top-notch Caviar Kaspia
restaurant (Via del Velabro 9; theroomsofrome.com;
from EUR 250).
With a starry cast of artists, the large-scale
exhibition Dream: L’arte incontra i sogni is taking
place at the Chiostro del Bramante, a convent dating
to the Renaissance era. Among the twenty names
featured are such titans of contemporary art as
Anish Kapoor, Anselm Kiefer, Bill Viola, Christian
Boltanski, and James Turrell. Their artwork explores
emotions, dreams, and inner demons, journeying
deep into the subconscious labyrinth of the mind
and soul and resulting in a selection of profoundly
visionary and allegorical work: from Kiefer’s painting
of a man lying under an endless starry sky to
Boltanski’s shadow theatre installation and Viola’s
sublime and transcendental moving portrait Sharon,
who slowly drifts underwater with her eyes closed.
(Arco della Pace, 5; chiostrodelbramante.it; until
May 5, 2019).
There are plenty of reasons to adore the films of
Luca Guadagnino, including the space he creates
in each frame. Now the Italian director, who also
runs his own design studio, has demonstrated
his skills in creating a concept boutique. The
Australian luxury skincare brand Aēsop, known
for its precise attention to showroom design, has
now opened a new store in Rome. Guadagnino took
inspiration from Rome’s ancient architecture and
rural surroundings, particularly the interior of the
neighbouring Church of San Lorenzo in Lucina.
Guadagnino’s clear modernist approach also refers
to the sharp aesthetics of Pier Paolo Pasolini’s films.
This boutique is a great way to combine smart
shopping with aesthetic self-education (Piazza di San
Lorenzo in Lucina, 28; aesop.com).