Search
Refurbishment of historic spaces
How do you make Villa Medici a space open to contemporary know-how, while preserving the history and spirit of the place? As far back as 1833, Horace Vernet made a bold intervention by creating the “Turkish room”, a reflection of an era fascinated by an imaginary Orient. In the 20th century, Balthus was the first to take up the challenge of contemporaneity in the 1960s, followed by Richard Peduzzi in the early 2000s. A new chapter opened in 2022 with Re-enchanting Villa Medici, a vast redevelopment campaign showcasing contemporary design, craftsmanship and the restored heritage of Villa Medici.
An architectural masterpiece of the Renaissance, Villa Medici has undergone several major interventions that are emblematic of the place today. Conceived in 1833 by the painter Horace Vernet while he was Director of the French Academy in Rome (1829-1834), the Turkish Room was created just after the artist’s return from his first trip to Algeria. An Orientalist dream, it is an early example of an Islamic-inspired interior in the Eternal City, testifying to the fascination for an imaginary Orient shared by many European artists of the Romantic period. Its decoration combines elements of Arabo-Andalusian character, Ottoman ornamental motifs and more naturalistic ones on the vaulted ceiling. The colorful earthenware lining the walls comes from the Giustiniani ceramics factory in Naples, and inspired Balthus for his painting The Turkish Room (Paris, Centre Pompidou).
Balthus (Balthasar Kłossowski de Rola, known as Balthus), painter and director from 1961 to 1977, refurnished the Villa Medici, designed a set of lamps bearing his name, restored the historic decor and invented a painting process that he applied to the Villa’s walls, producing a subtle patina effect with vibrant hues. The aim of the long restoration campaign he undertook was to restore the palace to the aura of a Cinquecento villa. Far from conceiving a historical reconstruction, Balthus proposed a reinterpretation of the decor, marked by his technical experience and artistic sensibility. The innovative solutions he experimented with at Villa Medici were in constant dialogue with the Renaissance decor and took advantage of the natural light that bathed the rooms and altered their perception throughout the day. In the gardens, he rearranged the squares, introducing copies of antiques from Ferdinando de’ Medici’s collection, including the famous Niobides group.
Richard Peduzzi, designer, scenographer and director from 2002 to 2008, designed the streamlined furniture for the entrance hall, cinema, library and cafeteria, opening the doors of Villa Medici to 21st-century design. In the gardens, he redesigned the parterre patterns with a play of geometries. Using raw materials and simple lines, he creates discreet, modern furniture for the cultural activities and operations of Villa Medici. His series of furniture and lighting fixtures is characterized by utilitarian unity, blending into the space while maintaining a dialogue with Balthus’s decor. As part of his project to reorganize the spaces, Richard Peduzzi revisited the question of lighting in particular: he designed the chandeliers in the vestibule and Grand Salon, floor lamps with square shades and twisted concrete-iron lamps installed in the main staircase at the entrance.
On the garden level of Villa Medici, the refurbishment of the six reception rooms (2022) was entrusted to Kim Jones and Silvia Venturini, artistic directors of the House of Fendi, established in Rome for four generations. For the lounges, they selected contemporary furniture by French and Italian designers such as Chiara Andreatti, Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance, David Lopez Quincoces and Toan Nguyen. Among the iconic pieces: the Via Appia travertine and chestnut table, specially designed by Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance for the Salon Bleu and the Salon de lecture. Also in the Salon Bleu, the luminous yellow of the Grove and Groovy armchairs (Toan Nguyen) meets the deep green of the Virgola chairs (Chiara Andreatti). Period furniture, such as the 17th-century armoire acquired by Balthus and now installed in the Petit Salon, or the Tenture des Indes tapestries in the Grand Salon, contribute to the harmony of these chromatic ranges, alongside a remarkable group of 20th-century tapestries deposited by the Mobilier National. Signed by Louise Bourgeois, Sonia Delaunay, Sheila Hicks, Aurélie Nemours and Alicia Penalba, among others, they celebrate the work of women artists.
Moving upstairs at Villa Medici, the re-enchantment continues with a colorful, graphic lexicon. In the six historic rooms above the loggia, Franco-Iranian architect and designer India Mahdavi orchestrated the refurbishment, playing with a juxtaposition of colors, materials and geometries. The Lovers, Elements and Muses Rooms, which form the former apartment of Cardinal Ferdinando de’ Medici, are illuminated by pastel textiles chosen by India Mahdavi to decorate the antique furniture belonging to the Villa or taken from the reserves of the Mobilier National, such as the luminous sofa and armchair set by Jean-Albert Lesage in the Salon Lili Boulanger. In the Muses Room, the large diamond-patterned carpet echoes the parterre redesigned in the early 2000s by Richard Peduzzi, which is laid out in the gardens below. The polychrome furniture in the Galileo and Debussy Rooms, designed by the designer and covered in trompe-l’œil cubes, recalls the nuances of the friezes and ceilings painted in the 16th century. Produced by Maison Craman Lagarde and cabinetmaker Pascal Michalon respectively, these inlaid wood furnishings are an example of the high level of expertise mobilized for the re-enchantment of the Villa Medici (cabinetmaking, ceramics, tapestry) and of the alliance, at its highest level, between design and craftsmanship.
Continuing upstairs, a wooden walkway leads to a series of en suite bedrooms in the building’s south wing. Their double north-south exposure offers spectacular views of both Rome and the interior façade of the Villa Medici. Long used as living and working quarters for the residents, these rooms are now open to guests and can be booked in advance. Seven of them are currently being refurbished by seven French and Italian teams of architects, designers, contemporary artists and craftsmen. Selected through a competition, the teams are infusing a new contemporary spirit into the rooms, transforming a stay at Villa Medici into a unique experience where Roman inspirations intertwine with references to the Villa’s Renaissance heritage. The new fittings are also an opportunity to showcase a wealth of exceptional craftsmanship in glass, metal, ceramics, wood and plasterwork. The uniqueness of each room is reaffirmed: volumes are highlighted, surfaces sublimated (walls, floors) and the unity of each space emphasized.
Project: Studiolo
Team:
Sébastien Kieffer and Léa Padovani, Paris, FR / Designers
Atelier Veneer (Romain Boulais and Félix Lévêque), Paris, FR / Joiners and cabinetmakers Project: Camera Fantasia Team:
Studio GGSV (Gaëlle Gabillet and Stéphane Villard), Paris, FR / Designers
Paper Factor (Riccardo Cavaciocchi), Lecce, IT / Paper-mâché artist
Matthieu Lemarié, Paris, FR / Decorative painter
Project: Still Life
Team:
Acte Deux Studio (Johanna Lapray and Hugo L’ahélec), Paris, FR / Architects
Tristan Dassonville, Gentioux-Pigerolles, FR / Ceramist Project: Il cielo in una stanza
Team:
Studio Zanellato/Bortotto (Giorgia Zanellato and Daniele Bortotto), Treviso, IT / Designers
Incalmi (Patrizia Mian and Gianluca Zanella), Venice, IT / Glass and metal craftsmen
Project: Pars pro toto
Team:
Atelier Misto (Miza Mucciarelli), Brescia, IT / Architect
Rocas (Eliane Le Roux), Bruxelles, BE / Architect
Pietro Spoto Studio (Pietro Spoto), Milan, IT / Sculptor and visual artist
Claudio Gottardi, Brescia, IT / Decorative painter Project: Stratus Surprisus
Team:
Constance Guisset Studio (Constance Guisset), Paris, FR / Designer
Signature Murale (Pierre Gouazé), Puteaux, FR / Decorative plaster designer
Arcam Glass (Simon Muller), Vertou, FR / Master glassmaker
Project: Isola
Team:
Sabourin Costes (Zoé Costes and Paola Sabourin), Paris, FR / Designer
Estampille 52 (Paul Mazet and Fantin Mayer-Peraldi), Paris, FR / Cabinetmakers
The 7-hectare gardens of Villa Medici now boast over 300 citrus trees, including bigaradiers, lemons and citrons. As far back as the 16th century, Cardinal Ferdinando de’ Medici cultivated a passion for these rare fruits, which supplied his table. Today, these climate-resistant plants are of interest to researchers, chefs and contemporary artists, bringing together preservation, research, creation and transmission. With its triangular layout, Ferdinando de’ Medici’ “secret garden” has undergone several changes since its creation, including a major one by Balthus, director of the Académie from 1961 to 1977, who introduced lemon trees. Bas Smets, landscape architect, and Pierre-Antoine Gatier, chief architect of historic monuments, are now proposing a new intervention. They draw on the Renaissance heritage of Villa Medici to sublimate, in a contemporary spirit, this garden of fruit trees symbolizing crossbreeding. The new layout of the lemon garden includes the creation of a 26-metre pergola and a redesigned circulation around the belvedere overlooking Rome, the skyline being an integral part of the garden’s unique architecture. Now a convivial place for meals and meetings between Villa Medici residents and staff, the lemon garden inspired designers Muller Van Severen to create a new line of furniture with pure forms, published by Tectona.
Facing Villa Medici’s loggia, the piazzale extends to the parterre bordering the Aurelian Wall, marking the northeastern boundary of the gardens. Subdivided into 6 geometrically designed compartments, the parterre offers a privileged view of Villa Medici’s façade, decorated with antique bas-reliefs from Ferdinand de Medici’s collection. Designed by Balthus in the 1960s and 70s with a refined layout around an obelisk, then by Richard Peduzzi in the 2000s with the creation of the now signature geometric motif, in 2025 the parterre was enriched by a redesigned scenography. The parterre incorporates a new group of twenty lemon trees specially selected for Villa Medici by nurseryman and citrus grower Oscar Tintori Vivai (Castellare di Pescia, Tuscany). Balancing the contrasts between verticality and surface, the new layout revives the tradition of Tuscan gardens. The terracotta vases housing the lemon trees are original creations by Japanese ceramic artist Natsuko Uchino. Produced in the Pesci Giorgio & Figli workshop (Impruneta, Tuscany), the series she created for Villa Medici comprises 20 one-off pieces, decorated with motifs referring to ancient iconography and Medici symbols. The decorations were created using incisions, modelling and stamping techniques, including the exceptional use of fragments of Imperial Roman remains excavated at Villa Medici in 2010. The abundant relief of the vases accentuates their contemporary character and restores the memory of the gesture.
Step through the door of Villa Medici
Enter one of the most beautiful Renaissance villas in the heart of the Italian capital and travel through Renaissance Rome, that of the Grand Tour of the 17th and 18th centuries, to contemporary Rome....
Unpack your bags at Villa Medici
Sleep at Villa Medici, a unique place in Rome where the spirit of the Renaissance blends with contemporary design.