Glass: the favorite material of all designers

Glass is a very popular material among all designers thanks to its cleanliness and shine, which leads to an interesting play of lights. Glass is also the material of choice for the Italian architecture studio Santambrogio|Milano.

Their luxurious design houses can be built anywhere in the world and blend in the surrounding nature. Each part of the house with the exception of the ground floor is made of glass plates that form walls, floors or staircase. Houses in sunny locations are made of lighter glass as there is no need to protect the house against outside forces. Houses intended for a colder climate are built from stronger and thicker glass in order to be able to withstand namely snow. Such glass also helps insulate the interior.

Luxusní byt na pronájem Praha 1 - Staré Město, Praha 1

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The most luxurious designs of glass houses are equipped with all necessary functions. Pressing a button turns special glass panels into matte glass that guarantees privacy. Walls are equipped with roll-down curtains that can insulate the room from outside light.

Glass houses in Prague

You can find glass houses also in our capital city. Examples include the Dancing House that was built using exclusively glass plates. The Dancing House is currently one of the best representatives of modern architectural design. Another modern building is the Quadrio shopping mall on the Národní street, or the Raiffeisenbank headquarters at Karlovo Square. Glass walls can also be found in the Florentina building or in the Central Park residential developer project in Prague 3. Even some celebrities fell in love with the charm of glass houses; for example, developer Luděk Sekyra has a family house made of glass in Trója, designed by the renowned architect Eva Jiřičná.

How an hotelier came to discover art

The owner of the building Paul and his wife Titine decided to take advantage of the growing popularity of this place and in the 1930’s they expanded its facilities. It was reopened under the name La Colombe d’Or as a hotel with a restaurant and 3 guest rooms. Its friendly atmosphere together with Paul’s profound interest in art attracted many well-known artists to the hotel and in short order its walls were soon covered with paintings. Artists were leaving them there as a repayment for their lodging or the hospitality that they enjoyed in the restaurant.

In 1940, the south of France became a “free zone” and a number of famous thinkers and artists started to move to the Cote d'Azur. The place where they then liked to regularly and often meet was this already renowned restaurant with accommodation - La Colombe d’Or.

Luxusní penthouse na Praze 1 - 226m, Praha 1

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La Colombe d’Or; a matter of the heart

Slowly the hotel was expanding and a new façade was built using stone from the ancient Aix-en-Provence Castle and Architect Jacques Couelle designed a fireplace that became covered with the handprints of the people who had collaborated with him in the construction. At the end of the war new visitors started coming to La Colombe d’Or while new friendships were being created there.

After Paul and his wife had run the hotel it was taken over by his son Francis and his Danish wife and they continued together in the footsteps of Francis’s parents. The art collection grew gradually right up to the present day. The latest work is a large ceramic sculpture by the Irish artist Sean Scully that is located alongside the pool.

Hotel full of art

You can admire paintings by Picasso and Matisse in the restaurant and in the hotel. There is also the work of the Franco-Russian artist Marc Chegall and painter and sculptor Fernand Léger. One of the unique mobile sculptures of Alexander Calder lies in the outdoor pool area. Georges Braque, who was co-founder of cubism with Picasso, has also some of his art here.

You will not find another similar hotel in the entire area of Provence. Furnishing of the hotel is simple and it refers both to the local folk-style and to the glorious history of the area. While the use of natural materials that excel in regard to their precision craft processing together with the valuable artworks that are everywhere around act as balm for the soul.