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A treasure unveiled : Room N16 encapsulates the magic of Marrakech, which is also known as The Red City. Every room in Riad El Fenn boasts a unique and traditional Moroccan light. -
A treasure unveiled : Viviana Gonzalez owns a quaint shop in the Medina that stocks a variety of linen and decor accessories such as this beautiful vase. -
A treasure unveiled : One of the exquisite en-suite bathrooms that boast powerful showers, deep baths and silky soft robes. -
A treasure unveiled : Room N10 epitomises cool tranquillity. The bay window is a great example of the attention paid to detail in Moroccan decorating — the surrounding patterns are hand-carved. -
A treasure unveiled : Another of Riad El Fenn’s hanging courtyards features a fireplace, while the couches are a perfect place to enjoy a cup of tea whilst absorbing the wonderful surroundings. -
A treasure unveiled : After sitting down to an incredible feast at lunch, one can hardly imagine that this wonderful dessert still awaits. -
A treasure unveiled : As you sit back and relax after a hearty Moroccan meal at the dining-room table, these gorgeous lights are what you will see when glancing up. -
A treasure unveiled : The clever mix of ultra-modern and traditional Moroccan decor accessories can be clearly seen in this hallway leading to the stairs. -
A treasure unveiled : Standing on the walkway, this is the view of the enticing pool below. -
A treasure unveiled : One of the staircases leading to the second floor. Instead of installing a traditional rail, a built-in lit column was added for an unusual effect. -
A treasure unveiled : One of the beautiful hanging courtyards contains armchairs and small tables on which to place a cup of freshly brewed Moroccan tea when you sit down to read a book. -
A treasure unveiled : As you sip a chilled glass of Sauvignon Blanc while reclining on a lounger beside Riad El Fenn’s swimming pool, this is the lovely view above. -
A treasure unveiled : “To restore a house of such historical importance to the highest of standards, we have given love and attention to every stage of the restoration. All materials are natural, locally sourced, and put in place by the local craftsmen," says Frederic Scholl. -
A treasure unveiled : The intricate patterns created by the pendant lights are works of art in their own right.
PHOTOS: David Ross | PRODUCTION: Annemarie Meintjes | WORDS: Mirelle Leyden
Behind a wooden door on a small street in Marrakech lies a hidden treasure: Riad el Fenn, the family home, artistic retreat and business venture of Vanessa Branson.
Finding your way through the streets of the souks in Marrakech is like navigating an intricate maze. Not only do there seem to be more small streets than stars in the sky, but the vast number of colours, shuffling feet, sounds and smells is enough to leave you thoroughly dazzled and overwhelmed.
So, with a map in hand – a rather optimistic gesture – and after asking for directions for the umpteenth time, you accidentally happen upon an old and dusty little road called Street of the Palaces.
And there it is. The brown wooden door that looks identical to hundreds of others you have seen that day, but somehow this one whispers an enchanting invitation and bids you to enter.
El Fenn means “art” in Arabic and “hip” in the local slang. This makes perfect sense when you step off the bustling street into the beautiful saffron-coloured foyer and meet the unusual welcoming party.
Consisting of the friendly man who answers the door, an array of brightly coloured babouche slippers displayed on the floor to your right, and an original masterpiece by British contemporary artist Bridget Riley, this reception committee aptly sets the tone for what lies beyond.
Love at first sight
Vanessa Branson and her business partner, Howell James, stumbled on this large riad town house when they, too, became lost when returning to their hotel in the summer of 2002. Although it was very run-down at that stage, Vanessa still refers to her first sighting of the property as, “Love at first sight,” before adding laughingly, “However, one must remember that love is indeed blind”.
The crumbling riad, originally a family home built in 1825, was dormant with ancient stories embedded in the cracks in the walls, and restoring it would prove to require a lot of hard work, sleepless nights and an overdose of patience. According to Vanessa, drafting in the help of the reputable husband-and-wife team, Frederic Scholl and Viviana Gonzalez, was therefore not really a luxury but rather a necessity.
Vanessa gave Frederic a detailed brief and soon found that they had much in common: a love for art and a shared interior-decorating style. “This made the entire process a lot less tedious,” she recalls.
Frederic was determined to capture Vanessa’s personality in the building plans and wanted her to be included in every detail of the process. This meant couriering the plans back and forth between London and Marrakech as many times as was necessary for Vanessa to be in on every structural element.
These elements include 18 rooms, two large courtyards accompanied by petal-filled fountains and quiet reading corners, a large terrace on the roof, a luxurious spa and a digital screening room. The rooms have been decorated individually and each tells a story that is entirely unique to its style.
Room N16 is found on the hanging courtyard that overlooks the pool area, which is fully equipped with comfy loungers, towels and straw hats. The walls are covered in hand-stitched camel-leather panels that have been dyed a brilliant red – one of the most popular colours in the traditional Moroccan palette. The few accessories are a mix of ultra-modern, such as the blue-and-white striped pouf, and antique Moroccan pieces.
In Room N10, one of the larger colonnade rooms, the walls are a deep turquoise colour that changes into a different shade as morning turns to afternoon and disappears into twilight. The rainbow-coloured stained-glass doors cast a radiant display of patterns on the floor and ceiling, making the minimum amount of decor accessories necessary.
Walls that talk
When explaining the decorating process, Frederic elaborates, “The moment I started, I realised that these walls could talk. Originally, the plan was to decorate the rooms in more or less the same fashion but once we started, this proved to be impossible. It was as if each room had a story of its own to tell. I simply tried to listen.”
Each room comes with a luxurious en-suite bathroom in which there are delicious bath oils and robes that feel like cotton wool on your skin. “In Riad El Fenn, half measures are a foreign concept,” says Frederic. “Only the best will do. So the showers have power, the baths are deep, the mattresses are firm, the pillows plentiful, the linen fine, the beds huge and the candles scented.”
When strolling through this labyrinthine paradise, it is almost impossible to take in every fantastical element of design. Even the arches are complete with intricate ivory carvings and every pendant light paints a natural masterpiece of shadows on the surrounding walls.
Vanessa’s passion for art, life and aesthetic beauty is contagious and has become tangible in this family home turned boutique hotel. Being the woman she is, she had no choice but to unveil her treasure.
• Riad El Fenn: riadelfenn@menara.ma, www.riadelfenn.com
