Manna Resort

By Editorial Staff - 3 May 2022
Bagnara has participated in the project

This location is dedicated to the well-being of the mind and spirit, the starting point for a departure into an imaginary world created with furnishing items and elements from across the globe. Manna Resort, designed by Pichler Architects in the small town of Montagna (to the south of the northern Italian city of Bolzano), has breathed new life into an old sawmill in the wondrous nature of South Tyrol. Spread across several volumes, the hotel blends superbly and in its entirety into the surrounding landscape, its terraced profile mimicking the nearby hills and valleys and providing envious views of this natural expanse. The chalets are perhaps the best example of this, with two of them almost embracing the porphyry rocks that emerge from the ground and with private access to the bio-pool, and the third immersed in flora that is a merger of Alpine and Mediterranean plants. The suites are equally striking and unique, with the furniture in Japanese, Thai, Arab or African style – depending on the suite – almost recreating a small art gallery.

Manna Resort © Alex Filz Photography courtesy Bagnara

Similar importance was placed on the use of customized materials and claddings, ensuring the various traditions were respected. Bagnara played a central role in successfully achieving this. The company, based in the South Tyrol region, specializes in quarrying and processing natural stone and it was the ideal partner for this project, able to use its experience and expertise across all stages of the project, and to source materials from every part of the planet. For Manna Resort, Bagnara provided numerous, different claddings depending on the specific brief for the varied environments and, overseeing the customized installation, guaranteed both swift and high quality work on site.

For the bathrooms, for example, the choice fell on Verde Lapponia, a green quartzite from Norway with a cloudy texture, and Beola Nera, a dark grey gneiss from the Italian Alps that has a distinctive olive hue. For the bar counter, a black marble from Morocco was chosen as it has a warm feel and hints of Noir Port Laurent marble.

Manna Resort © Alex Filz Photography courtesy Bagnara

For the large staircase, another unique material was chosen, this time a quartzite from Angola called Kuroca, with its black background and gold veins that give any room a touch of natural elegance.
Outside, Bagnara’s work was about both material and visual integration with the local porphyry – a sensation that is reiterated through the use of green roofs that almost literally leave the fluidity of the woods unbroken.

The complex includes a spa, a gym and a restaurant, with the latter designed in a symbiotic, visual merging with the landscape that is achieved by having plants inside the facility and large glass windows. Since the restaurant is street-facing, it also helps protect the rest of the resort from the outside, creating a barrier that literally blocks any noise and so adds to the atmosphere of tranquility.