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HOSPES LAS CASAS DEL REY DE BAEZA SEVILLA, SPAIN |
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| ARCHITECTURE / INTERIOR DESIGN |
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| Hospes Design team |
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An 18th century multi-dwelling in the fiery city of Seville is the privileged retreat of Hospes Las Casas del Rey de Baeza today. Drawing on Arabian and European styles that have influenced the Andalusian capital for centuries, the hotel is a relaxed, sophisticated fusion of past and present.
Rustic natural touches are added using woven pull-string window shades and the riverbed rocks paving an idyllic path across the central courtyard. Flanked by a forest of wooden posts and both painted and untouched stone columns, which provide a necessary and yet far from drab support for the clambering vines, and two tiers of delicately carved wooden balconies. The wooden posts were actually salvaged from the 19th century Tavera de Toledo Hospital, which might have provided an inspiration for putting them to such good use. So as not to taint the prevailing traditional Spanish flair on the outside, the whitewashed walls are accentuated with the “albero” ochre bullring colour typically found in southern Spain.
Inside, the time-honoured feel is rooted in the terracotta flooring and curved, wooden slat chairs, which elaborate on the country theme. However, on entering the guest rooms, guests are met by interiors surprisingly reminiscent of chic, urban apartments. Global modernity is evident in dark chocolate-coloured furnishings including wooden beds from Indonesia, sweeping beech panelling, carefully chosen esparto carpets, and over-sized floor cushions to sink into and relax or else drape yourself across if that sultry Andalusian feeling grips you. On a more formal note, the design of the headboards mimics that of the window grates to create a harmonious connection between inside and out. Letting natural light in has not been left purely to chance: Its illuminating and sometimes beautifying properties are given an ideal stage in each of the rooms, simply by shining through slim passages created by columns, bouncing off freestanding bowl sinks, water jugs and other ornaments from times past – to be enjoyed in all their glory today. |
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