The two faces of hospitality

The gently undulating scenery of the Itria Valley is just one of the many fascinating natural features of the Puglia region. Here, on the southern slopes of the Murgia plateau, the rural landscape with its rolling hills dotted with traditional white limestone buildings continues to attract tourists from all over the world. To cater for this influx of visitors, in recent years there has been a real boom in the construction of exclusive holiday homes by converting long-abandoned traditional buildings, including the famous trulli (huts built with drystone walls and a conical roof), lamie (traditional stone buildings with a lowered dome structure) and farmhouses. One example is the B&B I Colmi Trulli Suites located in the town of Martina Franca in the province of Taranto, built from a converted trullo by ABBW-Angelo Bruno Building Workshop. “The clients’ brief was to create an accommodation facility that would stand apart from the many that had already opened in the area,” explained architect Angelo Bruno. Starting out from the existing historical complex consisting of a trullo with two attached lamie and one late-1970s volume with a garage, a veranda and an accessory room, the spaces were reorganised to create one single and one two-room suite with a shared patio. “When defining the concept of the project, we sought to preserve the building’s distinctive traditional features while creating a modern interior with powerful design,” explained Bruno. The interiors and exteriors stand out for their relaxed atmosphere and consistent design based on critical research into the functional needs of the B&B and the choice of materials. Ceramic tile, chosen as a distinctive element of the restyling project, extends continuously through all the spaces of the suites, including the floors and the veranda. The Terrazzo porcelain tile collection from Coem, chosen in a 60×120 cm size and colour Caolino Mini, is inspired by the irregular beauty of terrazzo, a solution widely adopted in early twentieth-century Apulian houses. The Cementine 20 collection tiles from Fioranese, used in the Mix 20×20 cm version on the bathroom walls and as an accent element for the alcoves and kitchenette areas in the two rooms, also create a vintage look. The small trullo, a temporary rural shelter of past times, has now become an original “cone-shaped bathroom”. The white ceilings and walls, stripped bare and bleached to create the effect of traditional whitewash, serve as a backdrop for the vibrant notes of colour of designer furnishings, including pieces made by local artists or designed by ABBW and modern accessories with shapes and materials inspired by the past (all produced under the new abouthesign design brand). “Looking back at the project, I would say we thought of all the future guests of the B&B as our clients,” concludes Bruno.