Ministero del Gusto, Marrakech

Hidden behind an unre­mark­able wooden door in the heart of Marrakech’s Medina lies the extraordinary house of Italian design duo Fabrizio Bizarri and Alessandra Lippini. Mention their names among the growing number of for­eigners who are making Marrakech their home, and they will inev­it­ably be greeted with nods of recog­ni­tion and smiles of friend­ship. For the Europeans who have settled in Marrakech are a close-knit bunch, united by shared appre­ci­ation of the Moroccan way of life. In their ten years in Morocco, the two designers have become reg­ular fix­tures of the Medina. But, if the locals have grown accus­tomed to Fabrizio and Alessandra, you cannot help but wonder what they would make of their cre­ation; the Ministero del Gusto.

Hidden in the exuberant bustle, the Ministero del Gusto is to be found in a small alley hidden behind a near invis­ible opening by one of the main arteries of the Medina. But, as soon as you step inside, there is no mis­taking that this is some­thing alto­gether dif­ferent. The Ministero is not so much a home as a show­case for their design tal­ents, it is an indic­a­tion to poten­tial cli­ents of just what a unique space Fabrizio and Alessandra could create for them.

The first thing that strikes you is the incred­ible open court­yard in the centre of the building, where the sun shines down through the small opening in the roof, to cast the most won­derful and chan­ging light upon the water beneath and the rough tex­tured orange walls. Long wooden poles sus­pended over the clear blue water serve as a focal point, a centre of atten­tion in this fant­astic space. But, like any truly suc­cessful design, the real wonder of the Ministero is not solely visual. It is in its ability to cap­tivate all of your senses and to affect your state of mind. The space is cool and calming, an escape from the Moroccan sun, but the infu­sion of light from above and the rich orange walls lift the spirits and remind you of just what a magical place is to be found beyond the front door.

Simultaneously a haven away from the fren­etic hustle of the Medina and a con­nec­tion to it, it echoes the rich col­ours and varied tex­tures to create a space that is tactile alters its mood with the move­ments of the sun. One of the most cap­tiv­ating fea­tures of life in Marrakech is the way in which every sight, sound and even smell seems to indicate the time of day. The sound of the Adhan from the many mosques all serve as an indic­a­tion of exactly what is hap­pening out­side in the city.

Upstairs, the views down onto the small pool are just as breath­taking but here other fea­tures of the space also com­pete for your atten­tion. The fire­place is cer­tainly unique and when the fire below is lit the whole top floor can be wreathed in smoke. The real treat, other than Alessandro’s envi­able col­lec­tion of vin­tage fashion, has to be the bath­room. The deep leather bath is filled from above by a tree trunk and con­jures up images of standing beneath a water­fall in the open.

Showering in the open is also an option on the rooftop with its won­derful views across the neigh­bouring rooftops. The roof of the Ministero del Gusto is a large sun drenched space where the vibrant orange has been bleached to per­fec­tion; ideal for loun­ging, enjoying the weather and enga­ging in a bit of neigh­bour watching.

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Ministero del Gusto, 22 derb Azzouz, el Mouassine, Marrakech, Maroc.

Photos ©Ken Sparkes Words: Carla Bower. All rights reserved. First pub­lished in Spaces magazine, issue 07.