Save | Email | Print | Most Popular | Reprints | 
RSS
By Jo Baker
Photography by Izzet Keribar, Mert Gokalp, and Mert Serter
On first impression there's an odd eclecticism to the design of the Casa Dell'Arte in Bodrum, Turkey, a hotel that has grown up around a family's wish to share its art collection. (The hotel's Latin name means "house of art.") But it doesn't take long before it all starts to feel coherent. The 14,763-square-foot modern mansion was inspired by a former holiday home of its owners, the Buyukkusoglu family, who own one of Turkey's most successful automotive firms, and though large and opulent, it feels disarmingly cozy. "We wanted the hotel to still feel like a house, and to be very social," says Fatos Buyukkusoglu, who led a group of young architects on the design. "We designed a lot of inner courtyards and spaces where guests can come together—at the dinner table, in the lounge, or by the pool."
From the road, the mansion extends lengthways toward the Aegean Sea in a series of interesting, sculpted spaces, many set with solitary love seats and lone sculptures, around a pool, across a lawn, ending at an over-the-water deck. Contemporary furniture pieces on the lawn (including oversized white and red pillows) are scattered and isolated, like statuary. The modern stone architecture has been accented with angular archways and glass frontage, and salvage from early Anatolian village houses (a combination of Greek and Armenian styles) a region in which the Buyukkusoglu have roots.
Each of the 12 suites, which range from 262 to 459 square feet, has a similar gallery-like aesthetic: cream-colored stone, cream and white retro furniture pieces, and sharp lines that leave breathing space for bright contemporary art pieces—more than 200 at any one time (many from the family's art gallery in Istanbul) and nearly all by Turkish artists such as Devrim Erbil, Fikret Mualla, and Adnan Coker. These run throughout the hotel; open galleries even run alongside the pool. In most rooms a fiber optic ceiling display mimics the constellations, with each room loosely based on a sign of the zodiac.
Meanwhile, the communal spaces (a cluster of large, open rooms) gleefully mix and match eras. In the restaurant, a modern dark wood dining table is twinned with antique candelabras, ornate French chairs, and display chests from 17th- and 18th-century France. And in a lounge off the lobby, rare old religious frescoes from Russia perch above an old stone fireplace, their colors matched in bright modern canvases on the walls, and heightened by modern lounge furniture in neutral shades. "I like old pieces," explains Buyukkusoglu, "but modern design is much more comfortable so we selected very ergonomic furniture and combined it with antiques." For more information, visit www.casadellartebodrum.com.
Save | Email | Print | Most Popular | Reprints | RSS
RSS
Home Is Where the Art Is
Aug 20, 2008By Jo Baker
Photography by Izzet Keribar, Mert Gokalp, and Mert Serter
On first impression there's an odd eclecticism to the design of the Casa Dell'Arte in Bodrum, Turkey, a hotel that has grown up around a family's wish to share its art collection. (The hotel's Latin name means "house of art.") But it doesn't take long before it all starts to feel coherent. The 14,763-square-foot modern mansion was inspired by a former holiday home of its owners, the Buyukkusoglu family, who own one of Turkey's most successful automotive firms, and though large and opulent, it feels disarmingly cozy. "We wanted the hotel to still feel like a house, and to be very social," says Fatos Buyukkusoglu, who led a group of young architects on the design. "We designed a lot of inner courtyards and spaces where guests can come together—at the dinner table, in the lounge, or by the pool." From the road, the mansion extends lengthways toward the Aegean Sea in a series of interesting, sculpted spaces, many set with solitary love seats and lone sculptures, around a pool, across a lawn, ending at an over-the-water deck. Contemporary furniture pieces on the lawn (including oversized white and red pillows) are scattered and isolated, like statuary. The modern stone architecture has been accented with angular archways and glass frontage, and salvage from early Anatolian village houses (a combination of Greek and Armenian styles) a region in which the Buyukkusoglu have roots. Each of the 12 suites, which range from 262 to 459 square feet, has a similar gallery-like aesthetic: cream-colored stone, cream and white retro furniture pieces, and sharp lines that leave breathing space for bright contemporary art pieces—more than 200 at any one time (many from the family's art gallery in Istanbul) and nearly all by Turkish artists such as Devrim Erbil, Fikret Mualla, and Adnan Coker. These run throughout the hotel; open galleries even run alongside the pool. In most rooms a fiber optic ceiling display mimics the constellations, with each room loosely based on a sign of the zodiac. Meanwhile, the communal spaces (a cluster of large, open rooms) gleefully mix and match eras. In the restaurant, a modern dark wood dining table is twinned with antique candelabras, ornate French chairs, and display chests from 17th- and 18th-century France. And in a lounge off the lobby, rare old religious frescoes from Russia perch above an old stone fireplace, their colors matched in bright modern canvases on the walls, and heightened by modern lounge furniture in neutral shades. "I like old pieces," explains Buyukkusoglu, "but modern design is much more comfortable so we selected very ergonomic furniture and combined it with antiques." For more information, visit www.casadellartebodrum.com.Save | Email | Print | Most Popular | Reprints |
RSS
