Interior designer Dorothée Meilichzon has filled the interior of Mylos Hotel in Cargèse, Corsica, with details that nod to the village’s Greek origins.
Although located on the French island of Corsica, Cargèse is known as Cargèse la Grecque or Cargèse the Greek, as it was founded by Greek refugees in the 17th century.
Here, architecture firm Orma Architettura used soil accumulated during excavation to form the walls of the new Mylos Hotel, creating a hotel with an earth-coloured exterior that appears to blend into the landscape.
The hotel was designed to fit in with the village of Cargèse and consists of a group of buildings with green roofs. The main building holds 25 rooms, with another 10 located in two external buildings built on terraces.
Inside Mylos Hotel, Meilichzon and her design studio Chzon created an interior that references the village’s Greek heritage. Having spent many holidays in Cargèse, Meilichzon knew the place well and drew on the area’s history and terrain for the interior.
“It is not that usual to work on a hotel project in Corsica,” she told Dezeen. “So first of all, our inspiration was Corsica, the endless sea, the maquis [shrubland] and the soil.”
“Then it was essential to reconnect with the history of the village, a Greek village in Corsica, with its well-organised streets, orange-tiled roofs, varying levels and breathtaking views.”
The island’s rocky landscape inspired tactile interiors with cave-like details and openings.
“The rooms are mineral and textured,” Meilichzon said. “Nothing is smooth. Some rocks emerge in places. We wanted to tell the story of the Mediterranean, with a few nods to Greek mythology.”
In the bedrooms, some walls were left bare, with the same colour and texture as the exterior walls, while others were clad in tactile lime plaster.
Red, blue and green statement walls add interest in the guestrooms, which also feature bathrooms and bedroom nooks with half-moon cutouts.
The designer also added black details that nod to the hats worn by Corsican shepherds, even going so far as to cut the headboards in the bedrooms to mirror their distinctive shape.
“Black was for me the colour of Corsica, so a lot of black touches above beds, above mirrors, on the concrete floor, remind of the shepherd’s hat,” Meilichzon said.
“The soil is ocher and this ocher is very present throughout the project, soaked on every wall, colouring the fabric of the sunbeds of the swimming pool and stained on some colored glass pieces in the restaurant,” the designer added.
Greek details were added throughout, as seen in the side tables that resemble Greek pillars.
“Some wooden tables have amphora ears, the friezes on the bathroom walls depict waves and are carved into the lime plaster,” the designer said.
She also added to the Greek feel by “recreating columns and alcoves”, which can be found in the bedrooms as well as in the restaurant and reception.
In the hotel reception, a monolithic stone desk features a decorative design that draws on the scrolls of Ionic pillars. Opposite the desk, a built-in cabinet features curving, cave-like cutouts for the shelves.
This organic theme also runs through Mylos Hotel’s restaurant, Teos, which serves Mediterranean cuisine with a Greek twist.
Here, Meilichzon used curved, sloping side walls to create booths and designed the entrance door with an uneven, undulating frame to evoke the feeling of entering a cave.
“We wanted to create some contrast,” she explained. “Some walls and pieces are sharp, some others are round and more organic, reminding of the nature surrounding the hotel.”
In another reference to the island’s landscape, Meilichzon used “natural materials that will blend in with the architecture”, including Australian wood, red wood, wool, cotton, branches, concrete, lime, rocks, stone and soil.
A landscaped garden outside Mylos Hotel features local plants, including olive trees and myrtles.
Meilichzon was named best interior designer at Dezeen Awards 2024. Earlier this year, she unveiled an Alpine hotel interior featuring giant ski headboards.
The photography is by Julie Ansiau.
