Latest news with #artnouveau
Times
13-07-2025
- Times
Hotel Supetar Cavtat review: understated elegance on the Dalmatian Riviera
This classy hotel in the pretty town of Cavtat, on the Adriatic coast of Croatia, is housed in a handsome 1920s waterfront villa with the usual Dalmatian trappings of creamy stone and green shutters. Inside is a boutique lover's dream — it was transformed in 2022 from a humdrum three-star into an intimate, five-star bolt hole with a delightful garden, pool and sea-facing roof terrace. There is a definite sense of being looked after royally when you're offered a cold flannel and iced water immediately on arrival. The vibe is understated elegance throughout, from the 21 lovely rooms to the public areas with a changing roster of art exhibits. This article contains affiliate links, which may earn us revenue Score 8/10There's a calming mix of English and French country-house style and some bold design touches, including eye-catching (but not jarring) wallpaper in some of the rooms. Florals are fresh rather than chintzy, with hints of Englishness in the fabric headboards that come from Andrew Martin, based in Chelsea, west London. The whole effect is a soothing one, featuring light oak floors and marble bathrooms, with a touch of art nouveau in the tiling adding to a spacious and airy feel. There are 16 rooms in the main house and five in a neighbouring stone house, with views either of the seafront or the palm-shaded greenery of the gardens leading to the pool area. The smallest room in the main house comes with a little patio — if you'd like it ask for room No 107. • Discover our full guide to Croatia Score 9/10You'll eat well here. Not surprisingly, the restaurant's Mediterranean-Croatian menu is heavy on local seafood — crab, octopus, swordfish, dentex fish and scallops from nearby Ston — while Istrian beef, Pag lamb and wild rabbit satisfy the carnivores. But it's all done with a delicate and assured touch. The setting is very romantic: a wide roof terrace with views of the sea for those sultry Dalmatian summer evenings. Sink into one of the squashy sofas for a cocktail before you eat. Breakfast is just as impressive, with most produce sourced from nearby suppliers. An expansive buffet of salad, meat, cheese, seafood, fresh fruit and pastries competes with a tempting menu of eggs cooked numerous ways, plus sausages, bacon and courgette fritters. One of the hotel's cosiest spots is its ground-floor bar, a clubby, cocoon-like space that has an excellent selection of wines, including those made from local grape varieties such as grk, posip and plavac mali. There's also a lounge terrace in the area between the hotel's two buildings. • Best Croatian islands to visit• Best luxury villas in Croatia Score 7/10Behind the hotel are the gardens, where you can relax under palm and citrus trees before walking up stone steps to the pool and flopping on one of the sunbeds. It's not a very big pool, but it is certainly a peaceful spot to while away the hours. The hotel's neighbouring building has massage rooms and a sauna, and guests are able to use the extensive facilities at its five-star sister property Hotel Croatia Cavtat, accessed via a shuttle. Here you can swim in the saltwater outdoor and indoor pools before drying off in the sauna or unwinding in the steam room. The resort also has loungers on the nearby beach that Hotel Supetar Cavtat guests can use for free. Score 8/10The hotel is in a prime waterfront spot in the main harbour, discreetly back from the water's edge. There is a beach just a few yards away, and if you continue along the footpath you can wander around the pine-shaded headland that forms one of Cavtat's two forested peninsulas. The town makes an appealing alternative base to Dubrovnik: it's only a 15-minute drive from the airport and boat trips to nearby islands are offered just a few minutes' walk from the hotel. You can also sail to Dubrovnik — or just hop on the bus if you're not in a hurry (about 40 minutes). Price B&B doubles from £427Restaurant mains from £33Family-friendly NAccessible N Mary Novakovich was a guest of Hotel Supetar Cavtat ( • Best things to do in Croatia• Best beaches in Croatia
The Guardian
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘Forgotten' designer of art nouveau Métro entrances to get Paris museum
The 'forgotten' designer of Paris's most iconic Métro station entrances and art nouveau buildings is to be given his rightful place in the city's history with a museum dedicated to his work. Hector Guimard left a distinctive mark across the French capital in the early 1900s, creating elaborate and monumental Métro entrances whose fans of iron and glass resembling unfurled insect wings were nicknamed dragonflies. The remaining station surrounds of sinuous cast iron, with lamps resembling lily-of-the-valley flowers and topped with the stylised Métropolitain sign that Guimard also designed, feature in postcards, tourist photos and style books. When installed in the early 1900s, however, many Parisiens were scandalised. One critic declared the green paint 'un-French' and another said the ornate signs were 'confusing to children trying to learn their letters … and stupefying to foreigners'. Art nouveau went out of fashion, and by 1913 the transport authorities had dropped Guimard's designs. By 1942, when Guimard died aged 75 in New York, where he and his American Jewish wife had sought refuge from the Nazis, he had already been forgotten and much of his work consigned to the scrap heap. 'It may be surprising to foreign visitors but the French have never really liked art nouveau,' said Fabien Choné, a Guimard collector and head of Hector Guimard Diffusion, a company involved in establishing the new museum. 'There was great opposition to Guimard's Métro entrances. While visitors saw them as marvellous symbols of the belle époque Métro, Parisians criticised it as what they called spaghetti style and couldn't understand why tourists liked them.' On returning to Paris in 1948, his widow, Adeline, an artist whose work had been displayed at the 1899 Beaux-Arts salon, worked tirelessly to preserve and promote her husband's legacy, which included about 50 residential buildings. She donated his drawings and smaller creations, including furniture, to museums, many of them in the US, and offered to bequeath the couple's art nouveau home, the Hôtel Guimard, and its contents to the state and then to the city. Both turned down the offer and the building was converted into flats with the furnishings scattered. In the wave of modernism that swept post-war Europe the style was sober and many Guimard creations were declared without historic or artistic value and destroyed. Of the 167 Métro entrances that he designed – described by Salvador Dalí, who painted Tribute to Guimard in 1970, as divine – only 88 remain. Choné said: 'After the war, each time the city did any work on the streets, they got rid of Guimard's designs. Even up until the 1960s to 70s the logic was one of destruction rather than preservation.' The museum will be established at the Hôtel Mezzara, a four-storey building in Paris's 16th arrondissement designed by Guimard in 1910 and which features much of his signature ironwork, including a spectacular glass skylight and chandeliers. The building, originally commissioned by Guimard's friend Paul Mezzara, a rich textile manufacturer from Venice and later acquired by the education ministry and used as student accommodation until a decade ago, will undergo a €6m (£5.2m), two-year renovation before opening around the end of 2027. Once open it will display known Guimard creations including art nouveau furniture and decorations as well as an archive of his designs and documents. 'It is absurd that there is recognition of Guimard at museums around the world, especially in the US, and nothing in Paris when he created some of the most important symbols of the city,' Choné said. Nicolas Horiot, an architect and the president of Le Cercle Guimard, an association created 23 years ago to save Guimard's designs and documents, said it had been a decade-long battle to get the state and Paris authorities to recognise the designer's work. He said the museum would right a historic wrong. 'After the second world war, Guimard was completely forgotten. Art nouveau no longer interested people in the urban design of the 1960s and many of his pieces were destroyed,' he said. 'The revival started in 1970 with an exhibition in New York, but it was a step-by-step process. We see this museum as repairing an injustice done to Guimard.'
The Guardian
22-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Five of the best European city breaks for summer
Quite why the Latvian capital remains so under the radar is a mystery; the cobbled streets of the Vecrīga (old town) and the elegant art nouveau architecture make it one of the most beautiful cities in eastern Europe. Long summer evenings, with temperatures rarely topping 30C, form the backdrop for rooftop bars thrumming with live DJs, as well as alfresco concerts in leafy parks, while the beautiful sandy beaches of seaside Jūrmala are just a half-hour bus ride away. Any visit should begin with a wander along the banks of the city canal and down Alberta Street, lined with ornate art nouveau mansions. Stop to refuel at the sprawling Central Market, housed in five former German Zeppelin hangars, offering dozens of local cheeses, smoked meats and classic dark rye breads – perfect sandwich fare. The streets kick into life in summer, with free weekly concerts on Wednesday nights in Dzegužkalns park and in the Vērmanes gardens on Fridays in August, while jazz and world music fans should visit between 2 and 5 July for the Rīgas Ritmi music festival. Where to stay Behind an art nouveau frontage, Hotel Neiburgs (from €114 B&B) combines the flexibility of self-catering apartments with hotel add-ons such as an excellent restaurant, fitness room and small spa. Anyone who thinks Belgium is a bit boring has never been to Antwerp – an artsy, quirky city packed with cocktail bars, coffee shops and independent art galleries that sparks into alfresco life in summer. On sunny weekends, Sint-Anneke beach (on the left bank of the River Scheldt) fills up with locals dipping their toes in the water and lunching on mussels at one of the many bistros that line the riverbank. Parks and open spaces become venues for street theatre, circus acts and open-air cinema, particularly during the Zomer van Antwerpen arts festival (19 June to 31 August). To get an idea of the city's rich history, visit MAS, an architecturally striking museum on the river, with each floor charting Antwerp's history as a global trading port, topped with a huge rooftop terrace that gives spectacular 360-degree views. Antwerp runs on its stomach, with microbreweries, chocolate shops and moules frites on every corner. The latest addition is Wolf, a food market with 10 restaurants. Pick up a picnic to eat in the gardens of Middelheim Museum's world-class sculpture park. It features six zones exploring the relationship between humans and nature through abstract installations and strikingly innovative pieces, such as Erwin Vurm's boat curving off a jetty, Misconceivable. Where to stay In the historic centre, Hotel Matelote (from €115 B&B) features chic, minimalist design within the framework of two 16th-century buildings. The capital of the South Tyrol – a fusion of Germanic architecture and history with Italian culture and food, set among the spectacular peaks of the Dolomites – is a gem. Surrounded by vineyards and lush mountain plateaux, it has one of the best summer music scenes in Europe. Jazz fans should visit between 27 June and 6 July, when the Südtyrol jazz festival offers more than 50 concerts across the region, while the Bolzano Festival Bozen (5 August-7 September) is a treat for classical music lovers, with performances held in some of the city's most beautiful buildings, including Dominican cloisters and the 13th-century Castel Mareccio. Most visitors to Bolzano head out to explore the spectacular scenery – at its loveliest in the summer months – either on foot along the city's greenways or by taking a cable car up to the Ritten plateau. The Guncina Promenade is a 2.8-mile (4.5km) walk from the centre of the city out into the hills, with lovely views back across the skyline, while hiking trails unfold from the 1,227-metre high cable station at Oberbozen, along with the South Tyrol's only surviving narrow-gauge railway. The big historic draw in Bolzano is Ötzi, a 5,300-year-old mummified iceman found by hikers in 1991 and sensitively displayed at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology. Where to stay Goldenstern Townhouse (doubles from €149 room-only) is set in the city's medieval arcades and makes a wonderful base. Sign up to The Traveller Get travel inspiration, featured trips and local tips for your next break, as well as the latest deals from Guardian Holidays after newsletter promotion As summer temperatures soar in the Med, Scandi cities look increasingly enticing, and nowhere more so than Gothenburg on Sweden's west coast. Näsetbadet and Askimsbadet beaches are short bus rides away, while a tram to the ferry port opens up the tranquil waters, unspoilt villages and long sandy beaches of the Gothenburg archipelago. Explore by kayak or island-hop by ferry, with the waterside deck at Tullhuset restaurant on Hönö island a great spot for a seafood lunch, before a paddle on the long stretch of sandy shoreline on Rivö island. Gothenburg is famed for its oysters and seafood, best sampled at Feskekörka, the city's waterfront fish market hall, which houses a clutch of excellent restaurants and a sunlit outdoor terrace. The city also has a centuries-long history of craft brewing and 40 independent breweries, many with tap rooms and restaurants. Sink a couple at Poppels Citybryggeri, or try the innovative brews at Sad Robot, open on Friday and Saturday nights. Need to clear a thick head? Dip into the city's sauna culture, spanning everything from a free public sauna in Jubilee Park to Dyrön electric sauna, a short boat ride from the city, with a spectacular three-mile hiking trail from the door. Where to stay Hotel Bellora (from 806 krona/£62 B&B) is a slick boutique affair with one of the city's best rooftop bars. Geneva is far more than a gateway to the Alps, and in summer has a laid-back, beachy feel, with a dollop of Swiss style thrown in. Popular spots for a swim include the artificial beach at Eaux-Vives on Lake Geneva (including a doughnut-shaped overwater deck and central pool), the floating 'beach platform' at the Quai de Cologny and the Genève-Plage, where all manner of watersports, from yachting to paddleboarding, are on offer alongside a straightforward dip. A great choice for vinophiles, the lattice of streets in the Vieille Ville (old town) are dotted with wine bars, from sleekly modern Soul Wines to the more traditional Vino Olio Caffe. Most roads lead to the Cathédrale Saint-Pierre, where the imposing vaulted exterior is a precursor to the spectacular lake views from its towers. After sightseeing, there's plenty more to enjoy; truffle out vintage finds at the Plainpalais flea market (Wednesdays and Saturdays), learn about the city's watchmaking history at the Patek Philippe museum, or soak up live music at the Genève-Plage with three nights of alfresco performances at the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande festival (21-23 August). It's a pleasingly indulgent city, too, filled with fromageries and farmers' markets (the best are at the Plainpalais on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday and Eaux-Vives on Wednesday and Saturday). For the ultimate treat, snag a table at Le Gruyérien for fondue, best worked off with a hike across the green slopes of Mont Salève – just a five-minute cable-car ride from the city. Where to stay In a city of ruinously pricey hotels, the Tiffany by Fassbind (from 122 Swiss francs/£109 room-only) is a relative steal, tucked away on a quiet street in the Les Bains neighbourhood with a chic terrace restaurant. Accommodation prices correct at time of going to press. These are the lowest available rates for July/August
