Rhinoceros Roma: A Palazzo Reimagined
Inside a six-story palazzo in Rome's Via del Velabro, fashion heiress Alda Fendi has orchestrated an ambitious fusion of hospitality and contemporary art. The Rhinoceros Roma, designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, demonstrates his signature approach to spatial drama through a series of unexpected interior volumes that challenge traditional hotel design.
Nouvel's intervention preserves the building's 17th-century skeleton while inserting striking contemporary elements. The architect's material palette reads like an industrial luxe manifesto: blackened steel, brushed concrete, and patinated mirrors create spaces that feel both raw and considered. Each of the 24 apartments bears his distinct touch – bathrooms are encased in metal boxes that appear to float within the original stone rooms, while kitchen units fold away behind seamless panels.
Fendi's influence manifests in the hotel's dedication to artistic disruption. Rather than hanging traditional artwork, she commissioned site-specific installations that respond to the building's unique architecture. The ground floor houses the Fondazione Alda Fendi exhibition space, where the boundary between hotel and gallery deliberately blurs.
The suites themselves reject conventional hotel conformity. Some feature double-height ceilings with suspended mezzanine bedrooms, while others incorporate fragments of centuries-old frescoes into otherwise minimalist spaces. Nouvel's irregular window placements frame precise views of the Forum Boarium, turning Rome's architectural heritage into living artwork within each room.