My Birthday Weekend
My Birthday Weekend. My Birthday is on July 15th and it is now a tradition to spend the weekend with my bf, organizing a trip every time in a new place. This year we chose Verona and Lake Garda: exactly half way is Corrubbio and the hotel we stayed in, Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amistà… A really special place: keep reading to find out why!
My Birthday Weekend in Verona at Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amistà
The name of this five-star luxury hotel is not a coincidence: it was called Byblos because it is the name of the fashion brand of the owner’s brother, Art Hotel because of the private collection of contemporary art and design objects housed in it, Villa Amistà because it was the original name of the villa, built in 1700. The current owner, Mr. Facchini, conceived it as a contemporary art gallery personally choosing pieces of famous artists but also of emerging young people, to whom one is dedicated of the corridors on the first floor that I will show you below in pictures. But let’s start from the outside: my eyes were immediately enchanted by the peace of the beautiful park where the villa stands, with Verona marble fountains, centuries-old trees and many, many flowers (you could even hear the sound of cicadas)!
Staying in this ancient Venetian villa was very impressive for me, being passionate about contemporary art. Now I show you some of the works of art and design objects that I preferred!
Let’s start from the reception. As you enter the Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amistà, you will immediately notice how contemporary elements have been harmonized with the villa’s classical environments. The salons with marble floor, high frescoed ceilings, chandeliers of the eighteenth-century blend with pop colors and ultra-modern shapes for a truly breathtaking result!
I particularly loved the pop art works and I was shocked to see one of Robert Indiana’s LOVE and Andy Warhol’s Marylin!
There is also an artist shit by Piero Manzoni (he made 80 of them but now there are only 30 in the world, and one of them is right here) and an indigenous poupée by Pascale Marthine Tayou.
One of the works that most impressed me is in the hall. There is a man hanging from the ceiling who is about to fall: he represents the men who committed suicide during the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The statue is all covered with big babol, the pink chewingum that we children of the nineties always chewed!
The other photo you see in the gallery is a detail of one of Damien Hirst’s butterfly works.
I was very impressed by two entirely hand-embroidered tapestries by Alighiero Boetti, an artist from Turin, my city, who was an exponent of Arte Povera. The first depicts a globe. The artist used to include in his works letters that seem random, but that in reality, if you look carefully, compose words: here is written “senseless race of life”.
This one contains emblematic figures: each spectator sees different figures, each time new.
A design object that I loved very much was the jukebox that recites poems instead of playing songs!
Then there are Bocca sofas by Gufram and a statue of another famous Japanese pop artist, Takashi Murakami (whom I discovered at the time of his collaboration with Louis Vuitton: do you remember his bags?).
In the meeting room there are some very interesting works by Giulio Paolini that each contain a sort of “window” that captures the attention on a specific area of the painting.
In the same room there is a very intense work: a pig man laying on books, studying them to try to understand why he is not like other men. In his eyes we read all his suffering. It is so realistic because it is made with real hair.
There is also an unusual object: a chair that becomes a table.
Finally there is a beautiful painting by Vanessa Beecroft displaying the tree of the life.
Even the corridors leading to the rooms host works: the first floor is dedicated to emerging artists!
The one on the second floor is a labyrinth of colorful walls!
I had never stayed in a hotel with so many works of art in it! HERE you can find out more details about the hosted artists!
For my birthday dinner we reserved a table at the restaurant of the Hotel, Ristorante Amistà 33 of gourmet cuisine, where we ordered the tasting menu of sea and land. Also this really special and spectacular!
As a starter we are offered a very special apple, which represents the original sin. It contains a series of really delicious finger food: mozzarella stuffed with cherry tomatoes, Sicilian cannoli stuffed with goat cheese and rosemary, peach and apricot salad, peach ice cream.
The menu continues with a selection of the first courses of the house: Fava beans and pasta, cherry tomatoes and mangiatutto (tomato mayonnaise and broad bean cream); then Beef and amatriciana; still Black bread and sea, frozen elderberry and Gin Mare; finally Risotto with goat cheese creamed with Parmesan cheese and olive oil and hen bottarga.
As main course: Calamarata cooked in a bisque with shrimp, mussels, oysters and dentex in a cream of peas and seaweed sauce and then Gabilo and potatoes, yoghurt and Siberian caviar.
For dessert a Tiramisu revisited with black rice, mango and tonka beans!
Throughout the hotel, the attention to design details is really strong: look how beautiful the breakfast cups are!
And now we want to talk about their tables?
On the morning of my birthday I hear a knock on my door with a sweet surprise: a delicious cake prepared by Pasticceria Conato! So wonderful!
Going out to the swimming pool we discover that even the villa façade overlooking the garden contains a work of art: there are wolves that represent the people injured during the wars in the former Yugoslavia.
I then spent the rest of my birthday in complete relaxation by the pool: absolutely amazing!
So it ends the story of my birthday: a weekend of total relaxation and peace in a truly enchanting place.
A huge thanks to Byblos Art Hotel Villa Amistà for this truly unforgettable experience and to Vivere, a platform that allows you to discover ideal holiday destinations in just a few clicks, thanks to a personalized search and unique contents from all over the world.
Finally, thank to all of you for your greetings! Happy Thursday!
