Casa Santa Teresa — Corsica, France
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Thank you for signing up to Wallpaper. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
The newly minted Casa Santa Teresa is a case study of the transformative power of sensitive design. Set in an awkward triangular plot, the 1950s family home on Ajaccio’s cours Lucien Bonaparte had been abandoned for decades, but the allure of its fabulous beach frontage never dimmed.
For Aix-en-Provence-based architect, Amelia Tavella, the four-storey home – now reopened as a vacation villa – was an opportunity to fully open up the interiors, drawing the eye ever outwards toward the sun dappled terraces where al fresco dining tables and lounges lead down to the bijou five-metre-long saltwater plunge pool and, steps away, the Ajaccio Gulf and, beyond that, the Mediterranean.
Each of the five bedrooms and the spacious living spaces (including a library and games room) features a soothing palette of chestnut, lime plaster, cane, local stone, rope railings, and decorative concrete – the rough tactility of the whole rendered especially attractive in the late afternoon when the sun streams in through the wide pivot doors and interior shutters.
Should restlessness impinge, there are any number of natural diversions, not least swimming off the Capo di Feno beach, scenic jaunts along the nearby Chemin des Crêtes and Chemin des Douaniers, or, for the more indolent, a visit to the market in Ajaccio town.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
13bis, cours Lucien Bonaparte
20 000 Ajaccio
Corsica
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Daven Wu is the Singapore Editor at Wallpaper*. A former corporate lawyer, he has been covering Singapore and the neighbouring South-East Asian region since 1999, writing extensively about architecture, design, and travel for both the magazine and website. He is also the City Editor for the Phaidon Wallpaper* City Guide to Singapore.
-
‘He challenged the way we see things’: JW Anderson’s collaboration with Michael Clark has arrived
The JW Anderson x Michael Clark collection sees designer Jonathan Anderson pay homage to the radical British dancer and choreographer who rose to prominence in the 1980s
By Jack Moss Published
-
Tad.atelier’s Urban Houses project in Ho Chi Minh City explores shared and private space
Joining the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2023 is Tad.atelier from Vietnam, the exciting emerging architecture studio behind this Ho Chi Minh City project
By Ellie Stathaki Published
-
Ikea leaf table: the story of a flat-pack icon that sparked a design revolution
The Ikea leaf table sparked a flat-pack revolution when it launched in 1956: the design is now reimagined in new, colourful interpretations for the company’s 80th anniversary
By Rosa Bertoli Published
-
24 hours in Copenhagen: stay, bike, dine, and discover Danish design
Plan your 24 hours in Copenhagen: sleepover in a former brewery, wake up with a wild swim, and immerse yourself in the home of a modernist master
By Simon Mills Published
-
Peter Beard’s biographer, Christopher Wallace, on writing the wild life of the quintessential Twentieth-Century Man
Author Christopher Wallace traces the footsteps of the original playboy-artist-activist Peter Beard, travelling from Kenya, to the Serengeti, Cassis and beyond
By Christopher Wallace Published
-
Estelle Manor is a chic take on the hotel and country club
Estelle Manor, a transformed Grade II-listed house and estate in Oxfordshire, welcomes guests with Roman and Williams interiors, parasols by the pool, and a soon-to-open tepidarium
By Henrietta Thompson Published
-
Off-beat eco-lodge Sun Ranch opens in the Byron Bay hinterland
The 1970s-inspired Sun Ranch estate has been envisioned by a collective of friends from Australia’s fashion and hospitality scenes
By Monique Kawecki Published
-
Maroma, A Belmond Hotel, Riviera Maya opens following a major redesign
On the Yucatán Peninsula, the new-look Maroma showcases local craftsmanship and Mayan tradition with interiors led by interior architecture studio Tara Bernerd & Partners
By Charlotte McManus Published
-
A weekend in wonderful Copenhagen
The ultimate weekend in Copenhagen starts here: discover the latest openings across the UNESCO World Capital of Architecture, stay in a hotel afloat, start your day with brilliant baked goods and ski down a power-station piste
By Simon Mills Published
-
The Largo brings craftsmanship and creativity to Porto
The Largo is the latest hospitality offering in Portugal's second city, conceived as an elevated residence with an art programme that connects it to the city’s creative community
By Tom Howells Published
-
Louis Vuitton opens its summertime café in Saint-Tropez
The Louis Vuitton café in Saint-Tropez combines the brilliance of Michelin-starred chef Arnaud Donckele and pastry chef Maxime Frédéric for a one-of-a-kind Mediterranean feast
By Mary Cleary Published