Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Dar Mo’Da – the mascot. Charlie, the parrot rules over the riad.

Dar Mo’Da – the downstairs pool. The Dar Mo’Da is a private house available for rental for a family or a group of people. It can sleep eight to ten people. It is centrally located in the Medina or old city on the rue el Mouassine, near the Dar el Bacha Royal Palace. The house comes with a permanent staff and the guardian also is an excellent masseur. Besides the two pools there is a hamman, it is fully air conditioned, it has satellite TV and wifi.

Dar Mo’Da – Elena Masera and Susan Simon. Elena Masera and Susan Simon rest by the downstairs pool. We have just come back from a working day in the heat of Marrakech. Elena was sent to us by "divine providence", she was one of our invaluable guides and became a friend and we had a lot of fun together. Elena also efficiently manages the Dar Mo’Da. Susan and I where in Marrakech to write and photograph a shopping guide to the red city for the American publisher, The Little Bookroom, so look out for it next spring. I highly recommend it, it will be full of fabulous addresses for shopping in Marrakech.

Dar Mo’Da - one of the indoor sitting rooms. One of the sitting rooms on the ground floor. The white decor is so relaxing after a day shopping in the heat of the souks.

Dar Mo’Da – the terrace pool. A detail of the terrace and the pool. There is also an outdoor dinning room on the rooftop and a stunning 360 degree view of Marrakech.

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Café des Epices. 'Billed' as an oasis in the heart of the Medina, the Café des Epices has become a obligatory stop. The rooftop terrace looks out onto the Place des Epices and is a great place for people watching, excellent coffee, a cold drink or a snack like these appetizing pitta bread sandiwiches. It also has wifi access.

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Chez Khyati Mustapha. Mustapha Khyati is The pouff maker of Marrakech. He works in the alleyway in front of his shop. His creations come in all shapes and sizes and his leather is top quality. He also makes cushions and babouches to order.

Chez Khyati Mustapha: 5 rue El Ksour - Medina tel 00212 070 01 83 86

Contessanally tip: Click on the photos to enlarge them.
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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Art Ouarzazate. The colorful sitting area at Art Ouarzazate is where you can sit, relax and sip mint tea whilst being shown the most creative and unusual carpets designed by Abdel Samad.

Art Ouarzazate - Abdel Samad. Art Ouarzazate’s carpet designer, Abdel Samad shows off one of his wonderful creations, it’s a hand woven carpet with rings of colored beads sewn onto it.

Art Ouarzazate – a detail. A detail of the “shaggy dog” carpet made from strips of knotted suede at Art Ouarzazate. The colors are so well chosen and look so good together. It’s a joy to walk barefoot on the leather; I would love to have this in my bedroom.

Art Ouarzazate: 15 rue Rabna Kdima – tel 00 212 012 148 963 Pin It

Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

The Akbar Delights and Moor private showroom. Brother and sister, Isabelle Duchet-Annez and Yann Dobry run and design Akbar Delights and now the new line Moor. Whilst Isabelle takes care of all the “paper work”, Yann is plane hopping between New York, the Orient, France and Morocco designing the collections, which are made in India. They are sitting in the VIP private showroom in the Gueliz district, where celebrities, like Uma Thurman arrive in the underground parking and are whisked up to the first floor. Behind them is part of their extensive collection of King Mohammed paraphernalia.

Moor. This ecru Moroccon inspired hand-embroidered linen shirt exemplifies the mood of the new Moor line designed by the talented Lyonnais designer, Yann Dobry of Akbar Delights.

Akbar Delights – a detail. A detail of the sleeve of a tunic embroidered with small beads. Akbar Delights, on the Place Bab Fteuh, just inside the Medina, is a high-style tiny sophisticated boutique selling the most beautiful, made in India, hand-embroidered tunics in silk, cotton and linen inspired by the Orient and Asia. The accessories, like, gold embroidered babouches and beaded evening bags are displayed with cult books, objects and the biggest collection of King Mohammed paraphernalia.

Akbar Delights: 45 Place Bab Fteuh – Medina – akbar_delights@hotmail.com Pin It

Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Emdi - Marie Dominique Jauzon. Marie Dominique Jauzon has put her experience of years of fashion designing in France to use into her own label, Emdi. She makes the clothes and accessories in Morocco using only the best-imported natural fabrics. Her style is sophisticated Marrakech revisited, like the Jeans jacket she is wearing or the Toile de Jouey jackets hanging on the cupboard behind her. She is also an avid photographer and she is preparing a set of beautiful Moroccan postcards inspired by the bright colors the city offers everywhere.

Emdi – a detail. A detail of a kaftan made in tweed and embroidered by hand from the Emdi winter collection. Marie Dominique Jauzon shows and sells her beautiful clothes and accessories directly from her riad in the Medina.

Emdi: mdjauzon@wanadoo.fr
Contessanally tip: Click on the photo see see a bigger image.
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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Chez Zoe. A former dancer, French born, Caroline runs the Chez Zoe showroom in Marrakech. Chez Zoe makes the most beautiful hand-embroidered household linens and cottons. The original and magnificent designs are executed on site by a dieing breed of ladies, who still embroider by hand.

Chez Zoe: 510, zi de Sidi Ghanem – tel 00 212 44 33 61 44

Chez Zoe. The Industrial zone of Marrakech is full of design showrooms. The interesting thing is that most or part of the craftsmanship is done on site, usually in a backroom. Here you get a feel of the activity Chez Zoe. A beautiful hand-embroidered sheet is waiting to be ironed before consignment.

Chez Zoe. This toweling robe is a take on the classic djellabah, hangs waiting to be packed; it will be going to a hotel in France. On the left hand side you can just glimpse one of the women embroidering on site.

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Aziz. This handsome Morrocan jewelery designer, Aziz has so much style. While he was treading necklaces outside his store, he caught our attention with his perfectly co-coordinated clothes. Hues of purple and lilac together with an antique striped waistcoat and a matching cap all worked perfectly together. “It is my job to match and mix colors together.” He explained about his look.

Aziz. A corner of Aziz's shop. In the foreground a selection of the necklaces he creates by putting together antique and old semi-precious stones. You can find his small and fascinating shop on the Rue Mouassine near Khartit Mustapha’s store.

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Café Arabe. Café Arabe is the hip guesthouse and restaurant in the Medina where the foreign contingent like to sit back and relax. It is especially nice at sundown to sit on the rooftop terrace, which overlooks the nearby mosque, and sip an alfresco aperitif.

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Aya’s Marrakech boutique. Nawal is the delightful owner and designer of Aya’s Marrakech.

Aya’s Marrakech boutique. Tucked away under a gallery near the Place des Fer-Blantiers in the Mellah, Aya’s boutique is a discovery. Like the name suggest, Aya translates as everything that is beautiful or the best. Seen here, one of her ‘signature’ linen tunic tops beautifully hand embroidered and hand tinted antique framed postcards.

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Seen in the Jardin Majorelle. New York based, superstar landscape designer and gardening author, Madison Cox. He is consulting for the Jardin Majorelle. He has also written two books about the gardens; with Pierre Berge and Claire De Virieu entitled, Majorelle: A Moroccan Oasis, as well as, Majorelle Gardens of Marrakech.

A View of the Jardin Majorelle. French painter, Jacques Majorelle in the 1920s, designed the garden with marble pools, raised pathways, banana trees, grooves of bamboo and coconut palms. He was one of the most important plant collectors of his era. Many of the built features are painted “Majorelle Blue” which works wells with the soil, climate and plants. In fact the Majorelle Gardens are Jacques Majorelle’s masterpiece rather than his paintings.

Seen in the Jardin Majorelle. Against a "Majorelle Blue" wall, landscape garden designer, Madison Cox talks to Jardin Majorelle directrice, Soraya Abid and Fashion designer, Bernard Sanz.

Jardin Majorelle - Boutique. This is one of the most beautiful boutiques in Marrakech. Fashion designer, Bernard Sanz designs all the merchandise. He is prone, and who isn’t, to fine Liberty cotton, like these barouches covered in it. After a career in Paris designing for Yves Saint Laurent, Hermes and Balmain, Bernard has settled in Marrakech and continues his art for this wonderful sophisticated space.

Jardin Majorelle. A row of colored pots and plants are composed like a painting, not surprisingly as the Jardin was created by the French painter, Jacques Majorelle in the 1920s. Later, the garden was taken over and restored by Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Berge.

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Chez Mohamed or Chez Shoua. A message for world peace, discreetly prevail above the meats waiting to be cooked.

Chez Mohamed or Chez Shoua. Mohamed cooks behind a tin screen with a hole in the middle, it has blue and white clouds painted on it. Finally he is cooking our meat. We had to wait “hours” while Japanese TV was filming him. Chez Shoua, which means barbecue in Arabic is the hot spot to eat in Marrakech. That is if you can find it, it’s in the Souk des Feronniers.

Chez Mohamed or Chez Shoua. The kitchen.

Chez Mohamed or Chez Shoua. We ate on little stools delicious barbecued meats, omelets and pitta bread served on a tray in the souk, in front of an antique shop. This was the best meal of our whole trip!

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

The Cats. There are thousand of cats prowling the streets of Marrakech, most of them skinny. Only the smart survive.

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Marrakech: interesting people, designers, craftsmens and more...

Building boom. These corrugated tin walls, painted Marrakech red, just like the red walls of the old city, fascinated me. They hide the construction going on all over the city. Marrakech is known as the Red City; because its pink tinted buildings reflect the light like a rose quarts gem.

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Milano: The Horse exhibiton at J

The Horse exhibition at J. Piero Prinetti Castellletti jewelry boutique, J hosted the exhibition, The Horse. The very social Venetian and Milanese young Italian designers, took up the theme with aplomb. Photographed above, muralist and designer, Idarica Gazzoni stands by her Ghiaccio glass sculptures made in Murano.

A detail of the table setting. The centerpiece is a crystal ball with a horseshoe inside, made in Murano and designed by Idarica Gazzoni. In the foreground, Giberto Arrivabene’s wood and silver place mats and hand blown glasses grace the table.

The spouses. Bianca Arrivabene patiently hangs out, with Giangaleazzo Visconti while their respective spouse, present their new designs. They sit under a wall drawing by Idarica Gazzoni for J-Horse.

The interior decorators. Milanese top interior designers, Roberto Peregalli and Laura Rimini, came to check out the wares.

The Friends. Giberto Arrivabene and Marie Brandolini fool around with Gibi’s place mats. The extremely elegant mats are made in wood and have a silver ring around the border inscribed with Latin phrases. Marie, a successful designer for her company Laguna B, was in Milan to support her Venetian friends at their opening party.

A table setting. This romantic table setting is lit by candlelight, which makes the glass and silver glow to its best advantage. Osanna Visconti’s Spina silver cutlery rests on Giberto Arrivabene’s wood and silver place mats. The mats are inscribed with Latin phrases. Gibi, as his friends know him, also designed the glasses, which were hand-blown in Murano. Though it’s hard to see the white plates have a cream lucky horseshoe design in the center, designed by Idarica Gazzoni for J-Horse.

The Jewelry designer. Jewelry designer, Osanna Visconti shows off her new collection of ‘"free form” bronze cutlery called “Spina".

The Lampshades. Paola Napoleone presents one of her beautiful sculptural lampshades. She is standing in front of a wall hanging called Palazzo The painted by Idarica Gazzoni for J-Horse.

The Host. Piero Prinetti Castelletti who owns and runs the J boutique in the charming old section of Milan, proudly shows off his gold dipped horse shoe. The elegant presse papier was especially conceived for the exhibition of young designers entitled the J-Horse.

Lucky horseshoes. Bang on the theme of the J-Horse these beautiful gold dipped presse papier horseshoes, designed especially for J.

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Venice - Tilson in Murano exhibition

Tilson in Murano at Bugno Art Gallery – Venice. Young and dynamic gallery owner, Massimiliano Bugno, proudly stands next to internationally renowned British artist, Joe Tilson with Labirinthos, 2007 (33x19x4cm) between them. Tilson is a part of an important generation of artists that formed at the Royal College of Arts that includes Frank Auerbach, R.B. Kitaj, Peter Blake, Allen Jones and David Hockney. Bugno Art Gallery presents the exhibition, Tilson in Murano – until June 15th. It is the first time that Joe Tilson works in glass and the beautiful exhibition documents seventy-one sculptures that the artist created between 2006 and 2007 in Maestro Silvano Signoretto’s glass workshop in Murano.

Tavola Eye and The Four Elements. Tavola Eye, 2006 – 25.5x24x4cm and The Four Elements, 2007 – 20x28.5x 9cm. Each piece comes in an edition of four original pieces.

Project for The Four Elements. Project for The Four Elements, 2007 - mixed techniques on paper. Each glass sculpture was shown alongside its original project.

Alpha Wheel. Alpha wheel, 2007 – 19x25x7.5 cm – comes in a edition of four original pieces.

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Milan Furniture Fair - centro

photograph courtesy Fornasetti

Galleria Carla Sozzani – Installation by Barnaba fornasetti – Iconic Obsession. Was this installation with it’s turbulent weaterh effects a sign of the times to come? Iconic Obsession by Barnaba Fornasetti at the Galleria Carla Sozzani.

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