One of the greater pleasures of Venice these days is witnessing the revival of its Grand Canal frontage as one long-abandoned palazzo after the other is spruced up and repurposed for an appreciative Millennial audience.
The former Palazzo Bacchini delle Palme in the Santa Croce quarter has just emerged from an extensive two-year restoration as the 18-room Palazzo Venart. Just about every single square inch has been coaxed back into Technicolor life, the finished product a testament to the crack team of art historians and artisans, and antique experts from the Fondazione La Fenice.
The original wood and gold-leaf ceiling and terrazzo and ornate parquet floors set the scene, the restorers reimagining the Golden Age of Venice as set-pieces of silk walls, French court piano, swathes of brocade, and original tempera frescoes that are believed to have been inspired by the ones at the Palazzo Grassi.
There are modern touches, of course, not the least of which are the filigreed renderings of Venice’s emblem, the golden winged lion, and a cheerfully coloured abstract of the dome of Saint Mark’s Basilica in the hotel’s garden. In an adjoining private courtyard lined with magnolia trees, the two-Michelin starred Enrico Bartolini presides over the kitchen at Ristorante Glam, sending out regional treats like spaghetti with smoked eel and wild fennel, veal sweetbreads with local artichokes, and beetroot risotto.
ADDRESS
Santa Croce 1961
-
Shop the gloriously mad inner workings of Gary Card’s brain in London’s SohoSet designer and artist Gary Card has taken over London's Plaster Store – expect chaos and some really good accessories
-
Venerable British car-maker AC goes OTT with the high-output, low-slung AC GT SuperSportPitched at all-American fans of the original AC Cobra, the GT SuperSport is a fearsome two-seat roadster with more muscle than ever before
-
The dynamic young gallerists reinvigorating America's art scene'Hugging has replaced air kissing' in this new wave of galleries with craft and community at their core
-
Il Sereno’s new Listening Suite is what phonophiles’ dreams are made ofDesigned by Patricia Urquiola and Il Sereno founder and audiophile Luis Contreras, the new Lake Como-facing suite unites Japanese listening culture with Italian design
-
Inside Belmond’s most exclusive holiday villa yet, a lavish Ligurian palazzoOnce the theatre of lavish parties, Villa Beatrice is now a palatial haven of seclusion with easy access to Portofino’s Splendido, a Belmond hotel
-
The most stylish hotel takeovers to pop up at this summerFrom Capri to Ibiza, luxury fashion brands are taking over seaside resorts with exclusive boutique pop-ups and bespoke poolside accessories
-
Detour Discotheque is bringing ‘the world’s dreamiest party’ to PugliaThe pop-up event, La Dolce Vita Disco, promises dancing, good food and sunshine in a 16th-century Italian farmhouse
-
Five tranquil suites by Patricia Urquiola suspend visitors ‘between sea and sky’ in CapriPatricia Urquiola dreams up a study in contrast and tradition for the next chapter of Jumeirah Capri Palace
-
Sun-soaked European destinations to visit in springDreaming of Florentine palazzos and Greek islands now that the weather is starting to turn? Check into one of these beautiful European hotels and holiday homes
-
Everything you need to know about Italy's Lake Maggiore, according to FormafantasmaFrom baroque gardens to panoramic views, Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin show us around this Italian escape
-
Wallpaper* checks in at Romeo Roma: a new hotel that’s one of Zaha Hadid’s last projectsLocated within Rome’s Tridente, Romeo Roma is a palimpsest of periods in which the late Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid left her avant-garde mark
