Painted directly onto the wall of the lounge space at Villa Kico by owner and artist Kico Mion, the yellow graphic work – The Crossing – lends itself perfectly to the cave-like feel of the interiors. The wooden coffee table and concrete wall bench softened by Indian textile cushions were custom-designed by Kico.|
Villa Kico owners: Kico and his wife Stefania Gastaldo.|
With a simple geometric shape, textured facade and minimalist lines, the home is made up of a series of separate spaces, some connected to the outside via a veranda. “The design was based on the play of light and dark, sunlight and shadow,” says Kico. “I tend to model my architectural spaces as a response to the raw nature that surrounds them.”|
With a simple geometric shape, textured facade and minimalist lines, the home is made up of a series of separate spaces, some connected to the outside via a veranda. “The design was based on the play of light and dark, sunlight and shadow,” says Kico. “I tend to model my architectural spaces as a response to the raw nature that surrounds them.”|
Across from the lounge area, the dining space is anchored by a custom table by Kico, with the vintage orange chairs sourced from the Lido in Venice - home to the Venice Film Festival. The wooden ladder on the left was once used during olive harvests, and the white table was found at a second-hand shop in Maglie. On the right, an antique Baroque console houses brass palm fronds from a market in Martina Franca, a vintage glass cloche, and
a 2015 artwork by Kico. The Calla floor lamp is an Angelo Lelii original for Arredoluce.|
Entirely custom-designed by Kico, the steel-and-concrete fitted kitchen features a backsplash of original 19th-century Puglia tiles. The green Osvaldo Borsani-style chair is a vintage find.|
Next to the compact kitchen, a breakfast area is furnished with an 1800s pantry cupboard from an antique shop in Maglie, a wooden dining table by Kico, and vintage 1950s chairs. The Taraxacum pendant light is a 1960s design by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni for Flos.|
Connected to the outdoors, an “exhibition” space at the back of the house
is filled with vintage finds. Rusty iron-framed daybeds flank one of Kico’s 2011 mixed-media works, part of his 2011 solo exhibition “Sacralita in Puglia”. The long coffee table is made from a piece of wood that once adorned the ceiling of a 1700s palazzo in Bari, which has been painted by Kico. Vintage rattan chairs, found at an antique market, stand under another of Kico’s 2011 works. The concrete sink, designed by Kico, features a backsplash of the same 19th-century Puglia tiles as the kitchen.|
Connected to the outdoors, an “exhibition” space at the back of the house
is filled with vintage finds. Rusty iron-framed daybeds flank one of Kico’s 2011 mixed-media works, part of his 2011 solo exhibition “Sacralita in Puglia”. The long coffee table is made from a piece of wood that once adorned the ceiling of a 1700s palazzo in Bari, which has been painted by Kico. Vintage rattan chairs, found at an antique market, stand under another of Kico’s 2011 works. The concrete sink, designed by Kico, features a backsplash of the same 19th-century Puglia tiles as the kitchen.|
From the main entrance of the villa, the linear qualities of the fittings and furnishings direct the eye to the pool deck outside and the olive grove beyond.|
Stairs lead past a “sofa” made of cushions on pallets to the main bedroom.|
Looking back towards the blocky villa from the pool deck.|
A wall feature, created by Kico, offers additional outside seating.|
A wide staircase connects the garden to the roof terrace.|
The swimming pool – an essential element of a summer home – juts out into the surrounding olive groves. Vintage recliners carry Stefania’s interior design aesthetic outdoors.|
A joint creative effort between Stefania and Kico, the main bedroom features a remarkable, tubular concrete “bay” window to highlight what can be seen of the landscape. A 1960s Amanta coffee table by Mario Bellini and an antique metal stool add vintage character.|
A feeling of freedom and tranquillity prevails on the expansive roof terrace, with views stretching past a unique sculpture towards the distant coastline.|
The floor tiles in the guest bathroom were sourced at an antique shop in Maglie. The chair is a vintage Austrian design.|
WORDS AND PRODUCTION Marc Heldens PHOTOS Verne Photography
In Italy’s southern Puglia region, the Salento is where the Salentine Peninsula forms the heel of the Italian boot. It’s here that artist and architect Kico Mion and his wife Stefania Gastaldo have built their summer home.
In Italy‘s far south, the residents talk in the local dialect about lu sule, lu mare, lu ientu – sun, sea and wind; the three powerful natural forces that have shaped the landscape and the local population over centuries. With its red- coloured soil, green olive groves and cactus fields, the landscape often resembles parts of northern Africa or Mexico – but its small villages, country roads with walls of stacked boulders, and vast fields with robust masserie (fortified farms), trulli (workers’ cottages) and casali (farmhouses) show that this is clearly Puglia.
Hints of the centuries-old architectural history are everywhere in a region that southern Italians describe as the “end of the world”, and near the small village of Serranova, nestled in a nature reserve, is Villa Kico. Built as a summer home by the owners – artist and designer Kico Mion and his wife Stefania Gastaldo – it was designed to respect the local environment and architecture, and reflect the characteristics of Kico’s paintings.
During the winter months, the couple live in Veneto, near Venice, where they own a house and work from their painting/ design studio. But for the past 15 years, during the summer months of July, August and September, they have also spent time living and working in Italy’s southern region. They’ve bought and renovated several houses in Puglia, returning to the area again and again in search of a challenge, and creating sanctuaries not just for themselves but for international clients too.
Kico’s aesthetic is about broad lines, spaciousness and the optimal use of natural light, all of which is reflected in the layout of Villa Kico. Stefania’s talents lie in adding character and ambience with vintage furniture, artworks and carefully curated objects, often sourced from second-hand markets in Puglia and Veneto, as well as at auctions and on international websites (in the case of specialised vintage items). The result is an understated yet artistic voluminous structure that’s somewhere between a loft and a villa.
A joint creative effort between Stefania and Kico, the main bedroom features a remarkable, tubular concrete “bay” window to highlight what can be seen of the landscape. A 1960s Amanta coffee table by Mario Bellini and an antique metal stool add vintage character.
With its sturdy geometric shape, textured facade and minimalist lines, Villa Kico echoes the work of legendary Mexican architect Luis Barragán, embracing Modernism but also deeply rooted in Mexican tradition. The interior colour palette is clearly inspired by the red-brown hue of the soil in the surrounding olive orchards. Looking through the villa from its wooden front door, you catch a glimpse of the azure-blue swimming pool in the distance – a contrast to a moody living space that requires time for your eyes to grow accustomed to it as they transition from light towards dark. Gradually, the space opens up, revealing the personality of its inhabitants in the furniture, artworks and objects.
The living areas are furnished with large tables and sofas, and adorned with Kico’s paintings. These were chosen in close consultation with Stefania, who is passionate about detail and refinement. She often accents rooms with console tables, which then serve as display spaces for decorative items.
Kico describes the house as a kind of cave. Fittingly, the yellow graphic work above the lounge sofa is an interpretation of a prehistoric drawing of a bison. “The cave belongs to us humans as an archetype, because we need its protection, its shelter,” says Kico. “It takes me back to when I was 14 years old and I first saw the work of artist Robert Rauschenberg at the Venice Biennale. From that moment, I planned to create a space for myself – a loft that was large enough to show my own artworks. In those dreams, I already combined paintings and sculptures with architecture.”