Baglioni Resort Sardinia: interior design project

The north-eastern coast of Sardinia, with its colours, scents and strong winds forge a sensorial relationship with its surroundings and a complex experience between man and nature. Here the senses are constantly stimulated, enhancing the attention to details and materials.  They must be smart, not only  giving an added value to performance but also enhancing expressivity. Lights, sounds, smells and colours themselves play a role in bestowing psychological as well as physical well-being.

But the allure of Sardinia  does not stop there. Sardinia is a place steeped in a rich, century-long culture of materials. It is not simply a question of craftsmanship and know-how, it is a profound expression of cultural belonging. Sardinia, being an island, had, for centuries, been a place  where relations outside the island were few and far between and has developed its own characteristic form of arts and crafts, as well as craftsmen with their unique and special characters. This heritage is almost uncontaminated, and is, for this reason, a truly invaluable factor in understanding the spirit of the place.

The analysis and development of these two key themes made up the framework for Spagnulo&Partners’ Interior Design project for Baglioni Resort Sardinia.

The resort is immersed in a bay in front of one of the island’s most stunning beaches, Lu Impostu, with the island of Tavolara in the background, in direct contact with the strong, characteristic elements of Sardinian nature, reflected in many of the architectural choices of the project: the granite of the building’s façades, the broken up stone boundaries in Orosei stone, the pastel green and blue shades of the main walls which can be found in the common areas, the limestone of the bedroom walls. The architecture, the materials and the colours reflect the soul of their setting and describe, through a tactile and visual experience, a profound dialogue with the surrounding nature.

Any interior design project requires contact with a new and complex world, one made up of traditions, customs and craftsmanship,  which, just like language, music and literature, determine a specific cultural identity.

Spagnulo & Partners therefore discovered a number of traditions and reinterpreted them in a contemporary key to make up the framework of the Interior Design project.

The tradition of fabrics: woven fabrics and rugs by Mariatonia Urru, mainly  using the traditional Sardinian Pibiones technique or the Piana technique. Fabrics which showcase traditional designs, reinterpreted in colour and design, have been used for the beds’ headboards, in the rugs found in the common areas and in the bedrooms, in the cushions, in the upholstery and in the curtains. The main colours featured in the project – green, blue, ochre and brick red – are showcased in a number of different geometric patterns and textures, giving a distinct character to the bedrooms, as well as to the main public areas.

The tradition of ceramics and pottery: the hand made pottery and ceramic art by Walter Usai, a  “strexiaiu” craftsman (literally meaning tableware maker) who, to this day, carries on a pottery tradition started in 1850, first by his grandfather and then by his father. The clay around the Assemini area has always been outstanding and for this reason has favoured the growth of this intense tradition of the art of the lathe. In the bedrooms, just as in the common areas there are Asseminese jugs and pouring vessels, ring shaped urns in natural, non-toxic enamels coloured green, white, red and orange.

The tradition of artisan terracotta: a traditional craft which a local company, Cerasarda, continues to produce in the region. These hand-enamelled terracotta inlays in bleached oak can be found in the bedrooms. They are a perfect combination between modern design and traditional style thanks to the depth of the blue, green and red coloured enamels.

Sardinia, its territory, its colours, its traditions but also its images. The project created by Spagnulo & Partners includes a strong use of photographed images, created and chosen together with Alidem, based in Milan. They can be found in the lobby, in the restaurants as well as in the rooms themselves, at times arranged on full-height panels which reveal the true dramatic nature of the Sardinian landscape and its past through details, materials and impressions.

The Interior Design Project by Spagnulo&Partners also gives great importance to the external areas, the true focus of life at the Resort. The areas reveal great precision and accuracy from the point of view of materials and colour choices, in seamless harmony with the philosophies reflected within the interiors and in the architectural materials. The poolside area is furnished with wood and cane structures, real living spaces with armchairs and sun-loungers in teak wood (Ethimo collection), the cushions, fabrics and rugs all reflect the traditional and chromatic references of the interiors. The Lounge Terrace is another charming spot in the Resort. It is situated on the flat rooftop of the bar, a truly magnificent position from which you can enjoy breathtaking sea views. Here, too, the rugs and the coloured fabrics together with the ceramics of the tables and the stone flooring all reflect the value the project has given to identity. In addition, a contemporary flair is added by the sofas and the armchairs by Gervasoni together with Sampei lamps by Davide Groppi, and the minimalist design of the stone bar counter in Orosei stone and corten iron, which through a slit in its front reveals a truly scenographic effect: the jagged line of the rocks of Tavolara.