Italy will soon be enriched by an architectural masterpiece: Il Sereno Lago di Como will open a new, spectacular "Concept Penthouse Suite" in June 2021. This one shines in the style of fifties glamour: top Italian design and high-end furniture that you can buy.

Luis Contreras, owner of Il Sereno Lago di Como, is currently working with world-renowned designer Patricia Urquiola to realize his dream of a spectacular penthouse suite housed in a building adjacent to the main house. His latest project continues the success story of his internationally acclaimed and multi-award winning all-suite hotel. In the lakeside region of Lake Como, dominated by neoclassical buildings, Il Sereno Lago di Como has the status of an icon of contemporary architecture.

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The design concept

Although the design is inspired by that of Il Sereno - using the same materials, quoting existing proportions and working with the same artisans - the concept is unique. The existing penthouse suites are rated among the best in the world year after year. Even The Times lists Il Sereno's suites as a top Italian destination. But Luis Contreras and Patricia Urquiola, are looking to surpass that achievement once again with their latest suite vision.

Sources of inspiration for the interior are the glamorous style of the fifties, typical of Italy, as well as "La Dolce Vita", modernist Italian designers, the silk production around Como - and of course the design of Il Sereno itself. 

The choice of furniture is a nod to emblematic pieces of Italian design, the tradition of local craftsmanship and the architecture of the post-war years. Future guests can expect an exciting mix of new designs by Patricia Urquiola and works created as part of her latest design projects - including the Lariana bathtub, which she originally designed for Il Sereno and is now produced by AGAPE, and the Lud'o lounge chair by Cappellini. Classics by Franco Albini, Gio Ponti and their contemporaries complete the ambience. Another unique feature is the possibility of purchasing all the furniture in the suite.

Materials from the region

As in Il Sereno, the new Penthouse Suite places great emphasis on timeless design as well as on a design that relates to the uniqueness of the place. The use of natural, locally sourced materials was particularly important to Patricia Urquiola. The penthouse will feature innovative use of precious materials, including Canaletto walnut for room ceilings, Verde Alpi for stone walls and Ceppo di Gré for the floors. In the Penthouse, Venetian terrazzo is combined with geometric Ceppo tiles to create a new, classic look.

The heritage of silk weaving

After Marco Polo brought Chinese silk to Europe, Como was the first place in the western world where silk weaving mills were established. Even today, silk fabrics of the very highest quality are produced in Como. Patricia Urquiola's designs for cushions, foulards and other accessories - which guests can also buy - were inspired by the scarf designs of the 1950s and by landscape motifs around Lake Como. She also designed the silk fabrics for the staff uniforms in the existing Sereno Hotels.

Flowing transition between inside and outside

The renowned French botanist Patrick Blanc, who has already realised three green projects for Il Sereno (Le Canyon, Les Racines Echasses and Le Miroir du Lac), is realising a vertical garden on the façade below the suite. This living wall will be visible from the lake and will interact with the façade of the building and the neighbouring Miroir du Lac. Part of Sereno Hotels' identity is to incorporate the beautiful surroundings in which the hotels are located into each design. In the case of the new Penthouse Suite, it is the framing of the panorama offered from all sides of the suite, the capture of the atmosphere on the water, and the omnipresent relationship between the lake in the foreground and the mountains in the background.

Hotelier Luis Contreras comments on the project: "It's hard to describe in words how exciting it is for us to complete the new penthouse after five years in the planning. It is always a challenge associated with joy when you want to outdo yourself. We are extremely happy with the result. The balance between the contradictory elements of a conceptual simplicity and a certain opulence in the execution: this is something that is at the heart of the 'Sereno Hotels' brand and which finds its maximum expression here. The time with Covid-19 was and is extremely challenging - and so we can't wait to welcome the first guests in summer."

Il Sereno Lago di Como
Via Torrazza, 10, 22020 Torno CO, Italy
Tel: +39 031 547 7800
Price per night: from €3,500

Picture Credits: Il Sereno Lago di Como