The photographic volume is devoted to the extraordinary spaces of the Byblos Art Hotel-Villa Amistà.
Villa Amistà, a few kilometres from Verona, rises on the remains of a Roman “fortified house”. In the 15th century, the architect Michele Sanmicheli built the central body of the villa in Venetian style, while the present building, the work of the architect Ignazio Pellegrini, dates from the 1700s. The interiors contain admirable frescoes and original relics from both periods, recovered through careful scholarly restoration.
In 1999 Dino Facchini, an entrepreneur active in the field of fashion, bought Villa Amistà, abandoned since World War II.
In 2004, he called in Alessandro Mendini to plan the furnishings and design the interiors. Thanks to the presence of numerous works by internationally renowned artists, collected or commissioned over time by Facchini, the villa was transformed into a veritable museum of contemporary art. Today Villa Amistà is home to the Byblos Art Hotel where history blends with contemporary art forms, stirring a sense of wonder.
Mendini harmonised the most eccentric elements of his design with the Villa’s classic interiors. Bright colours and modelled forms coexist with the paintings and marbles of the 17th-century saloons, creating a unique and exclusive project. In this original setting, the communal rooms (from the restaurant to the cellar) as well as the guest rooms are embellished with more than 200 site-specific installations, paintings, sculptures by internationally renowned artists, including Vanessa Beecroft, Damien Hirst, Marc Quinn, Anish Kapoor, Giulio Paolini, Beatriz Millar, Peter Halley, furnishings and objects by designers Ron Arad, Philippe Starck, Marcel Wanders, Ettore Sottsass, Eero Saarinen, Eero Aarnio and many others.
In this miscellany of such different styles and artists, the hotel presents itself as a richly layered kaleidoscopic container, where the different levels coexist harmoniously, inviting the guests to be a part of it.
The surprising collection and the creative intervention inside Villa Amistà are the subject of a photo shoot created for the book by Paolo Riolzi. Written by Maria Chiara Antonini, the volume is enriched by contributions by Gabriella Belli, Massimo Minini, Mathias Facchini, Manuel Facchini and Paola Pimpi Amistà under the supervision of Beatriz Millar.
€ 42,00