The Challengers director has lent his eye to Palazzo Talìa, a treasured piece of Rome’s architectural heritage that is now a boutique hotel. Rose Dykins reports
Palazzo Talia has joined Rome’s luxury hotel scene, following the three-year restoration of a 16th-century landmark building.
Part of Small Luxury Hotels of The World (SLH) the property has a layered history. Situated in the heart of the capital, close to Rome’s Trevi Fountain, the palazzo building was built in the 16th century and housed the oldest educational institution in Rome.
Over the centuries, it has been a home for nobles, as well as a place of learning for underprivileged boys and orphans, popes and politicians alike, before closing its doors in 1999.
The building’s revival and transformation into a boutique hotel was spearheaded by the Federici family.
Italian artisans were selected to breathe life back into the palazzo, preserving its special architectural heritage, with decor that infuses timeless elegance with modern comfort.
Studio Luca Guadagnino – established by the eponymous film director – created the Palazzo Talia’s opulent public spaces, including its restaurant, bar and spa. Guadagnino’s is known for his involvement in creating his films’ visual environments to establish moods and identities (such as Call Me By Your Name and Suspira).
Guadagnino told the Financial Times: “If you come to Rome, a hotel like this, you want to diffuse yourself in beauty, comfort and softness. So, for me, everything needed to exude that pleasure.”
Describing the exquisite, sensual design details during an exclusive look inside Palazzo Talia, Maria Shollenbarger from the Financial Times writes: “Surfaces beckon with nacre and sheen, pebbly-ness and pleats, silken or nubbly textures…The walls of the bar are lined with small rectangular-blown-mirror panels, their corners fixed with enamelled metal pegs like pastilles; they reflect back the watery abstracts of the 17th-century ceiling frescoes, creating the sense of being inside a shimmering jewel.”
A stand-out feature is the hotel’s floral carpet, guiding guests throughout the palace, leading to the central staircase, and the 248 sqm Magna Hall, adorned with 18th-century frescoes by painter Gaspare Serenari, which is available for private events.
Studio Luca Guadagnino also designed Palazzo Talia’s top-floor Terrace Suite. The space features peach wood panelling and a 66 sqm terrace overlooking the building’s inner courtyard.
The courtyard is filled with tropical greenery curated by landscape artist Blu Mambor, and doubles as a vibrant lounge, housing the bar and some restaurant seating.
The rest of the hotel’s 25 rooms, designed by MIA Home Design Gallery and Laura Feroldi Studio, are individually decorated, with premium, quintessentially Italian finishes, such as marble, precious woods, mouth-blown mirrors and handcrafted maiolica tiles, as well as one-off, handmade furniture and four-poster beds.