Venetian Glass Masterclass/ Starck`s jewel in the

Venetian Glass Masterclass/ Starck’s jewel in the lagoon | BLOG TL MAGAZINE
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Venetian Glass Masterclass/ Starck’s jewel in
the lagoon
Jan 19, 2011 • 5:27 PM
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Text by Guy Dittrich/ The Palazzina Grassi is a small but beautifully formed hotel that recently opened on the
Grand Canal in Venice just along from the Gallerie dellʼAccademia. Multifarious French designer Philippe Starck
has embellished the interiors using a mélange of glass worked by the artists and craftsmen of the lagoon city that
have made glass their livesʼ work.
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Starckʼs involvement in the interiors of this 25-room hotel has garnered many of the headlines. The usual drama
associated with the maverick designerʼs hotel interiors is present but the overarching element is glass. Walls are
lined with huge, backlit patterned and framed mirrors reflecting an audacious series of glass artworks and
individual pieces. Both the mirror and art come from Murano, the Venetian island of workshops and showrooms
that reflect the cityʼs culture of glass. The sophistication of the art pieces, a mix of flowing sculptures frozen in time,
the chandeliers, and the sheer quality of the delicately etched and engraved mirrors, create a subtle level of
authenticity that leaves visitors in no doubt that they are in Venice.
Walls of slim, reclaimed Venetian brick vie for attention next to others glowing with the burnished sheen of handfinished plaster stucco. Both are covered by the vast mirrors, hand-made in Murano by ARTIGIANATO
ARTISTICO VENEZIANO (AAV). The angled edges of the mirrors, neatly beveled with fine scalloped-detailing are
framed with slim strips of chrome. Selected by Starck from the family business of brothers Vincenzo and Giovanni
Barbini that supplied the original mirrors for the Palace of Versailles in the 17th Century, there is a reassuring
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Venetian Glass Masterclass/ Starck’s jewel in the lagoon | BLOG TL MAGAZINE
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timelessness to their design.
Collaborations renewed
The Barbiniʼs have collaborated with Starck before, at the Sanderson Hotel in London, but the scale of their
involvement in their hometown was tremendous given the size of the hotel. Over 289 mirrors were delivered for the
Palazzina Grassi project. “Each one is hand made,” explain the brothers, “We start by cutting the mirror to size
followed by the engraving and any decorative items such as flowers and leaves.” The mirrors are huge but rather
than creating them on site, were completed in Murano before being shipped the short distance to the hotel.
An additional unique feature of the mirrors is that they are backlit by strips of led lights. Using a new technique
developed in conjunction with the Politecnico di Torino and the industrial company Delta Impianti, the led lighting is
dimmable via a series of ʻsmartʼ control boxes. The result is that the reflected light can be self-regulated to allow
the guestroom spaces in particular to assume a variety of roles both within circadian rhythms and from one guest
to another.
The vast expanses of mirror and chrome present two different challenges. Firstly, any doubts over the coldness of
all those reflective surfaces is banished by the variability of the led lights and the plush furnishings of the bed, the
Fornasetti-patterned chairs, the underlit Moonstone and onyx table tops, the masks stenciled on lampshades and a
myriad of other small but tangible decorative touches. So confident is Starck of the overall comfort levels that even
cupboards are covered in reflective chrome and, in the master suite, the cupboard is actually made of glass.
Guests need to pack their most beautiful wardrobe! Secondly, the scale of mirrored surfaces could be seen as an
operational nightmare. Clearly this is not the guestʼs problem but the reality is that just as they donʼt tend to touch
walls they also donʼt touch the mirrors. Tempting as it may be.
Glass from another world
The mirrors from AAV also provide the backdrop for a number of the appliqué masterpieces commissioned by
Starck from artist Aristide Najean. Born in Algeria, Najean has lived on Murano since 1986 mastering the craft of
working with glass. “It is an intense process,” he describes, “the glass dominates you at 1,200°C. You have to work
quickly. You have to follow the rhythm of the glass.”
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The overwhelming theme behind these decorative glass elements is that of a journey. “Palazzina Grassi is the
middle point of civilisation,” explains Najean, “between the water and the earth. Between the lagoon and land.”
Take the swirling tentacles of the Gorgan-like appliqués that sit opposite each other in the hotel. The infinity of their
reflections in the framed Barbini brotherʼs mirrors has Najean seeing them as never-ending nets in which there is a
physical fascination for the guests. A little red crab peers quizzically up through the tentacles. Trapped or
enraptured? The decision is in the eye of the beholder.
At the narrow entrance to the main colonnaded restaurant / bar of the hotel is a small alcove with another of
Najeanʼs whimsical sculptures. In the surrounding bronze mirrored tiles are strange parts of limbs – half-in, halfout. Perhaps an elbow or is that a knee? “They are an invitation to begin the journey. Either you see them (at face
value) or you are taken by the arm and make the step behind the story,” suggests Najean of the mystical element
he has introduced.
Complicity between artists
“We understand each other as we understand the artistic references,” he explains of his relationship with Starck
whom he describes as “intelligent, sensitive and charming”. “It (the brief) is more of a suggestion than a precise
idea,” continues Najean who has also worked with Starck on pieces for Le Royal Monceau hotel that recently
opened in Paris. His latest work sees the development of glass into the forms of flowing water such as the
Catarata, a 4-metre high cascading glass chandelier for Buenos Aires decorator Laura O Tep.
Najeanʼs contribution at Palazzina Grassi extends beyond the appliqués to the hotelʼs signage at both the Grand
Canal entrance and the calle, alleyway entrance. That is if two glass bull heads can be taken as signage. Certainly
the hotelʼs devotion to discretion is acute to the extent of almost being on a “need to know” basis. A point doubtless
appreciated by its A-list guests that included Johnny Depp who was a guest whilst filming The Tourist, with
Angelina Jolie. Najean doesnʼt worry himself about such details focusing rather on the imagery behind the bulls
that have a far more friendly and welcoming look than the more monstrous Gargon-like appliqués inside. “The bulls
represent the fight between man and the bull. Of light and darkness. A middle point. The strength of the animal that
yet can be dominated by man,” he explains.
Anti-conformism reflects magical setting
A further bull-fighting reference is seen in the stone-columned restaurant and bar. This area together with the
adjacent Krug Lounge, overlooking the Grand Canal, is the heart of the hotel. Here Starck has chosen to display
numerous of Najeanʼs diverse range of glass pieces amongst the deep leather sofas and on the library-like
shelving. Amongst them is Nimeno II, a small but striking piece depicting the delicate moment when a matador just
avoids the raging bull. The gold speckled glass reflects the matadorʼs traje de luces, “suit of lights”, as their
outlandish uniforms are known; the bull is complete with barbed banderillas, trailing from its neck. The imagery
may not be everyoneʼs cup of tea but the delicacy of the execution is stunning. Other less provocative pieces such
as the Météorite, of silver and aventurine, and the Serpent dʼOr vase, are amongst dozens on display.
In spite of the mohair throws, fragile looking wooden rocking chairs and Najeanʼs artwork, the interiors of the
restaurant / bar have a distinctly clubby, masculine feel. The mahogany wood, used in tribute to the gondoliers,
and the dim lighting from the Murano chandeliers over the bar create a moody scene ideal for cozying up on a
foggy winterʼs day in Venice. The restaurant comprises a float glass topped counter fronting the show kitchen.
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Manning the galley stoves is chef Luigi whose previous experience includes spells at Locanda Locatelli and Zuma
in London. All of this is balanced by the femininity of the guestrooms above. Corridors with vast sweeps of white
curtains and chrome-framed black and white portraits lead to the sanctuary of the mirror-lined bedrooms.
The Starck effect
The Palazzina Grassi is Starckʼs first hotel in Italy following a long apprenticeship with Ian Schrager and the
Morgans Hotel Group. Their relationship delivered a hatful of iconic properties including the Royalton in Manhattan,
before its recent make over, the Delano in Miami, the St Martins Lane and the Sanderson, both in London. Starck
came in for significant criticism at many of these hotels for their lack of livability with outsized, uncomfortable
furniture that upped the gaudy, gimmick factor. Hotels that captured the Zeitgeist of metropolitan life but largely
managed to enhance the guest experience precisely once.
Amidst the expected Starckʼisms – acres of gauzy drapes, playfully humorous interior design and impractical
basins – Palazzina Grassi heralds a new approach. Guests will find a stunningly luxurious and comfortable series
of living spaces with outstanding levels of anticipatory service. Just the sort of space that engenders repeat
business, the holy grail of hoteliers. Make no mistake, Starckʼs approach to the interior design is still full of
surprises in no small way due to the glass interventions. “Palazzina Grassi can change you. It is the sort of place
you go into and donʼt know how you will come out,” dramatises Najean.
Working with Starck
Indeed, owner Emanuel Garosci describes the hotel as “an emotional tornado”. Garosci, no stranger to working
with high profile designers (Matteo Thun did the interiors at his Nhow Hotel in the heart of Zona Tortona, well
known to attendees of the Milano Salone each Spring, and he collaborated with Karim Rashid at the Nhow Berlin)
is to be congratulated in managing to distill the essence of Starck at Palazzina Grassi. “It was a great challenge,”
he explains, “but I wanted to work with him so I put up with the arguments.” Garosci sees Starck as the number
one hotel designer and not just from a professionalsʼ point of view but also from that of the end user. “Starck
excites you, whereas (the style of) Andre Putman relaxes people,” he compares.
Garosci is a native of Turin but, like Starck, he has made Venice his home and, typical of “outsiders” looking in at a
place, it is their interpretation of Venice at Palazzina Grassi that stands out. Moving well past the antiquated
velvets and damasks of many of the other quality hotels in Venice, there is so much difference at the hotel it is
proving a strong draw for Venetians keen on something new.
Continue reading on glass and lighting in TL9!
www.palazzinagrassi.com
www.starck.com
(Text by Guy Dittrich / Images: Aldo and Cristiana Martinelli)
Tags: Artigianato Artistico Venzino, Artistide Najean, Barbini, Delta Impianti, Garosci, glass, Le Royal Monceau,
London, mirror, Murano, palazzina grassi, philippe starck, Politecnico di Torino, Sanderson Hotel, venice
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