First foray

Owned by Kuwaiti real estate developer, Abyaar, the 20 floor property boasts 152 luxury apartments including 22 studios and 130 one and two bedroom suites.

Conceptualised by Matteo Nunziati, at Studio Mateo Nunziati, an interior and product design studio in Milan, was designed in a way that could be described as ‘effortless luxury’, due to its minimalist layout, and attention to detail.

“The initial design brief was to realise a warm, and harmonic but innovative design hotel residence. I took this idea and interpreted it in the perfect way by studying and ‘melting’ the local traditions together with a modern know-how of design,” said Nunziati.

“We innovate by applying new materials, exclusive materials, and studied details. For this reason our projects are different and stand out among the normal standards, especially in Dubai,” he added.

Before embarking on the project, like most of Nunziati’s designs, he researched the region’s culture and heritage, in order to make the most out the space, as well as adhere to the proposed design brief.

“From our point of view we always provide great attention, and grave importance to the territory of the proposed building and the local traditions. The interior of the Radisson SAS Residence therefore, was massively inspired by a mixture of things – the colours of the desert, from the monumental shapes of ancient Egypt for example, but mostly from the general Arabic culture,” said Nunziati.

“These inspirations then got translated into modern terms, so that the colours and the ancient decorations from yesterday live in the innovative and current environment of today. In order to make this concept into reality, almost all of the furniture in the residence is custom-made. To insure that we maintained high quality standards we also got involved with some of the most precious international furniture, covering and lighting companies, such as Poliform, Matteograssi, Fontana Arte, Florim, Rapsel, Gruppo FEG, amongst others,” he added

The first thing permanent residents and guests are faced with is the reception, and lobby areas. Both areas are paved with polished, travertine marble floors and use understated furnishings, such as brown leather-upholstered sofas and stools, an indoor water feature covered in white flowers, as well as one-off wooden sculptures, to aid in the creation of an open-plan, calming space.

The impressive height of the main lobby is accentuated through the use of enormous lighting structures. A red crystal chandelier overlooks the centre of the main lobby area, while a cluster of cream coloured, oversized, fabric lampshades hang behind it – both accentuating the grand scale of the Residences tall ceiling, and highlighting the area’s library – a welcome feature for guests designed by Italian company, Essemme.The soft colour palette of creams and browns is continued along the corridors that lead to the elevators whose interior is illuminated using tiny spot lights. The same colour scheme then continues through the carpeted floors of the corridors, spilling onto the interiors of each of the apartments. This distinct tone is carried throughout the building.

Each of the various styles of apartment has been individually designed and executed, through meticulous attention to detail, with custom-made Italian furniture and high-quality materials, sourced from the finest suppliers.

Designed with a luxurious mixture of leather and soft fabrics, the hotel’s Standard Studio Residences, and one and two bed apartments are all crafted in a minimalist style. Large panoramic windows flood each of the rooms with natural light and allow guests to soak in views of either Dubai’s marina or the ever-changing city skyline from their private balcony.

“In order to guarantee excellence, we chose a collection of the most precious and most experienced design firms to provide us with the furnishings for the Radisson SAS Residence. We didn’t want to compromise the design and durability of the products used, so for us, this was the only option,” said Nunziati.

“All materials used sourced from the most precious furniture and lighting firms across Italy and Europe. Ceramic tiles in the rooms, custom made bronze panels, hide leather furniture, and aluminium for detailed wall paneling,” he said.

“Low-angle lighting systems for the ceilings and walls were provided by Raso, dim-lights from Lampa, custom made wardrobes from Essemme, Rapsel for the bathroom furniture, Altai for custom made silk-wool carpets, furniture from Poliform, Feg, and Matteograssi as well as kitchen furnishings from Varenna and Salvarani. As you can see, this was a collaboration between myself, and the products of many renowned furniture manufacturers, designers and suppliers,” he added.

According to Nunziati, often, in many international design hotels there is a loss of identity, whereby many well-established brands tend to standardise themselves, using the same designs, throughout all of their worldwide chains.

“Our goal is to create an interior that would create emotions, and the client will remember. Not only that but we wanted to create a hotel that clearly identifies itself with the quality of the brand Radisson SAS, but with a particularly unique twist,” said Nunziati.

Taking this into account, he made sure that the Residence had the signature style of the Radisson, but gave it an international feel.

“From one point of view standardising a hotel provides a certain assurance for the client who has to choose a hotel in an unknown city, but on the other hand there is the risk of loosing contact with the environment and territory, by applying innovation, in an impersonal manner, to the same standards all over world,” said Nunziati.

“I believe that a good design, accustomed to the location of the development can really improve the ambiance of the hotels exterior and interior without compromising the quality, and this is what I like to think we’ve acheived at the Radisson SAS Residence,” he added.