Join artBahrain.org
ArtEscape
Art Hotel - SICILY - July/August
About Atelier sul mare’
July/August 2011
Copyright © 2010, artBahrain.org. All rights reserved. Use of this site constitutes agreement with our Terms and Conditions.
Discover...
L I V I N G " i n " A M A S T E R P I E C E
At the foot of the Nebrodi mountains, in the part of northern Sicily between Cefalů and Messina, a true ‘wonder’ lies on the banks of the beautiful sea of Castel di Tusa. What I’m about to describe is an absolutely unique experience in its genre ; it’s an experience that makes the fruition of art possible
in a different form. The new form is called
‘being part of it’ and has been made possible thanks to the patience and dedication of
Antonio Presti, creator of the ‘museum albergo Atelier sul mare’.
in a different form. The new form is called
‘being part of it’ and has been made possible thanks to the patience and dedication of
Antonio Presti, creator of the ‘museum albergo Atelier sul mare’.
SICILY. LIKE THE Medici and the Borghese, Maecenas Antonio Presti from our times has made a museum that ‘lives’ of the presence of who lives in it. The ‘Atelier sul mare’ has 40 rooms and space for 110 people, although its peculiarity is that more than 14 rooms that were decorated by internationally famous artists like Hidetoshi Nagasawa, Fabrizio Plessi, Piero Dorazio, Dario Bellezza, Renato Curcio, Michele Canzonieri, Angelo Savelli and many more. Every artist has originally utilized the space and furniture of a room which has made the room a unique piece of art. Whoever sleeps in such a room lives the unique experience of living in symbiosis with a masterpiece created for the enjoyment of their stay.
"I imagine a hypothetical visitor entering the ‘Atelier’, going to the reception,
going up to his room and locking themselves in it. From that moment the space becomes
‘his space’, it becomes a live museum.
No longer a hotel with artwork hung on the walls, but a place where people can live in a museum, a human size museum, with human size artworks.
Whoever wants to can live in an artwork for an hour, a day, a week; this, is an unique situation"
going up to his room and locking themselves in it. From that moment the space becomes
‘his space’, it becomes a live museum.
No longer a hotel with artwork hung on the walls, but a place where people can live in a museum, a human size museum, with human size artworks.
Whoever wants to can live in an artwork for an hour, a day, a week; this, is an unique situation"
Atelier
sul mare'
It’s common to change rooms daily so the visitor can enjoy the major part of the artworks during their stay. Rooms with round and revolving beds, doors that open like a revolving bridge, labyrinths of mirrors, baths dug out in rocks with real cascades of water...the authors fantasy is so vast that it would be necessary to write a whole book to describe every room.
In the attempt to give you an idea of some of the artworks, we present three in particular in which we had the pleasure to ‘live’ and ,we hope, to understand. As Presti says : “It’s only entering and living in a room that the artwork will be fully appreciated ; the presence, the use of the room will be a fundamental part of the artwork.”
In a guided visit it is possible to select the room to stay in, or better, the artwork to complete, seeing the ones that are available.
In the attempt to give you an idea of some of the artworks, we present three in particular in which we had the pleasure to ‘live’ and ,we hope, to understand. As Presti says : “It’s only entering and living in a room that the artwork will be fully appreciated ; the presence, the use of the room will be a fundamental part of the artwork.”
In a guided visit it is possible to select the room to stay in, or better, the artwork to complete, seeing the ones that are available.
Property location: Castel di Tusa on the north coast of Sicily, to the east of Palermo and Cefalu.
Description: A remarkably unprepossessing three-storey modern block on the seafront in a small fishing village with view across the bay. The Atelier is the brainchild of Antonio Presti, the son of a wealthy cement baron who decided to use his inheritance to take art to the people. Signor Presti has created an “art drive” up in the hills, where the views are framed by giant picture frames and concrete mazes. He also pays poets to go on to trains to recite their verses to bemused commuters but in the Atelier he has his masterpiece, rooms in which guests are the finishing touch in a work of art. Twentyfive of the hotel’s rooms have been created by leading artists and they redefine our notion of what staying in a hotel should feel like. Take La stanza del profeta (1995) a homage to the film director, Pier Paolo Pasolini, where the guest enters, not by opening a door but by knocking it down and then traversing a long labyrinth like corridor, kneaded with straw and mud. Or Trinacria (1993), where everything is black and red, white and triangular, including the bed. Or Stanza del mare negato (1992), in which walls are entirely covered by old wooden doors topped by six television monitors, which, night and day, show the sea breaking on the Sicilian coast.
The Atelier is not a place to go if you want to sink in to six feet of pillows, but if you like the idea of sleeping at the bottom of a black camera lens where the window above your head opens like a shutter then La torre di Sigismondo (1993) is for you. Or if you like your bed like a plain polished slab of rock then it might be worth booking yourself into Mistero della luna (1991).
The bathroom: The only thing you can guarantee is water. You may find that your ensuite resembles the underside of a car (allegedly in homage to Pasolini’s death), or that the bath and sea seem to merge into one, as in Icaro’s “Nest” (1991), or, indeed, that the bathroom is to be found within a cavern as in “Dreams between signs” (1994). You’ll never take a traditional hotel bathroom for granted again.
The people: There’s a good chance of meeting Signor Presti who speaks good English and is always ready to discuss his ideas. Some of them are brilliant. Others, such as the lift that only ascends if its occupants sing have proved problematic. As you can imagine, the kind of people who turn up at such a place tend to be similarly idiosyncratic, arts-orientated and gently alternative.
Local interest: The rugged coastal landscape and the Nebrodi Mountains behind are well worth visiting. The mountain village of Pettineo, hosts an arts festival every year during which artists from across the world visit at Signor Presti’s expense to stay with local and paint. At the end of the festival their canvases are laid out together making a 1km work or art known a “The Canvas”. Each host then gets to keep his share in exchange for the bed and board(s) he’s provided. Knock on any door and if you ask nicely the householders will show you their curious trophies.
Access: The hotel itself is well provided with lifts and ramps but not all the art rooms are accessible. Best to ask ahead which are suitable. Pets are welcome.
Description: A remarkably unprepossessing three-storey modern block on the seafront in a small fishing village with view across the bay. The Atelier is the brainchild of Antonio Presti, the son of a wealthy cement baron who decided to use his inheritance to take art to the people. Signor Presti has created an “art drive” up in the hills, where the views are framed by giant picture frames and concrete mazes. He also pays poets to go on to trains to recite their verses to bemused commuters but in the Atelier he has his masterpiece, rooms in which guests are the finishing touch in a work of art. Twentyfive of the hotel’s rooms have been created by leading artists and they redefine our notion of what staying in a hotel should feel like. Take La stanza del profeta (1995) a homage to the film director, Pier Paolo Pasolini, where the guest enters, not by opening a door but by knocking it down and then traversing a long labyrinth like corridor, kneaded with straw and mud. Or Trinacria (1993), where everything is black and red, white and triangular, including the bed. Or Stanza del mare negato (1992), in which walls are entirely covered by old wooden doors topped by six television monitors, which, night and day, show the sea breaking on the Sicilian coast.
The Atelier is not a place to go if you want to sink in to six feet of pillows, but if you like the idea of sleeping at the bottom of a black camera lens where the window above your head opens like a shutter then La torre di Sigismondo (1993) is for you. Or if you like your bed like a plain polished slab of rock then it might be worth booking yourself into Mistero della luna (1991).
The bathroom: The only thing you can guarantee is water. You may find that your ensuite resembles the underside of a car (allegedly in homage to Pasolini’s death), or that the bath and sea seem to merge into one, as in Icaro’s “Nest” (1991), or, indeed, that the bathroom is to be found within a cavern as in “Dreams between signs” (1994). You’ll never take a traditional hotel bathroom for granted again.
The people: There’s a good chance of meeting Signor Presti who speaks good English and is always ready to discuss his ideas. Some of them are brilliant. Others, such as the lift that only ascends if its occupants sing have proved problematic. As you can imagine, the kind of people who turn up at such a place tend to be similarly idiosyncratic, arts-orientated and gently alternative.
Local interest: The rugged coastal landscape and the Nebrodi Mountains behind are well worth visiting. The mountain village of Pettineo, hosts an arts festival every year during which artists from across the world visit at Signor Presti’s expense to stay with local and paint. At the end of the festival their canvases are laid out together making a 1km work or art known a “The Canvas”. Each host then gets to keep his share in exchange for the bed and board(s) he’s provided. Knock on any door and if you ask nicely the householders will show you their curious trophies.
Access: The hotel itself is well provided with lifts and ramps but not all the art rooms are accessible. Best to ask ahead which are suitable. Pets are welcome.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
- ArtGuide
- Art Fair
- Galleries/Museums
- Artists' Opportunities
- Awards
- Venice Biennale