Fine Dining and Leisure on the Ishim River

By Editorial Staff - 4 April 2022

Inspired by images of ancient Asian yurts and the rippling waters of the nearby Ishim River, The Veil is a five-story monolith that has transfigured the city of Astana’s entire skyline. Built on the banks of the river that winds through the Kazakh capital, its unusual forms make the new building a veritable landmark, a break from the surrounding urban context and, at the same time, a connector between the two parts of the modern metropolis separated by the river.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea I primi piani sono pensati come un tempio del gusto, con ristoranti dalla cucina internazionale, bar, una wine boutique e una pizzeria.

The fluid and dynamic exterior of the Marco Casamonti/Archea Associati-designed Veil provides 8,000 sq. m of fine dining and leisure at restaurants, stores, a wine bar and a boutique hotel, all within an envelope characterized by repeated arches along its topline and façades, with mineral inlays and textures that, working their way from bottom to top, simulate watery waves. This rhythm continues with glass arches that run along every side of the building, not only reflecting the sky and clouds but offering glimpses of an interior that reprises the exterior’s contrasting materials – glass, wood, Cor-Ten^® steel and pigmented concrete for the walls – along with drapery inspired by the Ishim.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea Elemento cardine del progetto, che connette le varie ali dell’hotel, è la grande e iconica scala le cui rampe si susseguono, mai uguali a se stesse, creando un vuoto centrale per tutta l’altezza dell’edificio.

Every flight of the imposing, central staircase that connects all parts of the building is configured differently. The unique profiles on each level provide a sinuous and harmonious complement to the floors above and below. Continuity with the walls, which ripple like waves on the river in some places and are smooth in others, is achieved through the colors chosen and the sometimes solid, sometimes hollow handrails.

The ground floor opens out to form a large covered plaza for the lobby and reception, acting as a gateway to the hotel rooms, bars and stores, in addition to a fumoir area equipped with armchairs and tables in one of the building’s terminal points, surrounded by glass windows that invite visitors to stop and look at the surrounding landscape. The first and second floors offer cafés and restaurants serving Kazakh, Italian and Chinese cuisine, along with events spaces and a dedicated kids area.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea

The three upper levels are reserved for the hotel’s variety of room types, ranging from standard to presidential suite, along with a wellness center whose ceiling resembles a star-studded sky, and offer yet more views out over the city. The spa is not the only area to benefit from a sophisticated lighting system: the restaurants are hung with sumptuous chandeliers, many of which are imposing and stylishly-shaped.

An architectural work with the power to create a dialogue and balance between man-made creations and nature, The Veil encapsulates the city of Astana’s forward-looking gaze.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea | A large, iconic staircase whose ramps, all slightly different, seem to chase one another without ever quite catching up, carves out a central open space that rises through the building’s entire height, providing a hallmark design element as well as connecting the hotel’s different wings.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea | The lower floors were conceived as a temple to taste, with restaurants offering international cuisine, bars, a wine boutique and a pizzeria.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea | As well as a ceiling designed to look like a starry sky, the spa’s large windows offer views out over the city.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea | The hotel offers standard bedrooms, junior and senior suites, plus the elegant and luxurious spaces of The Veil Suite.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea | Bedrooms in a variety of sizes are located on the boutique hotel’s top three floors, offering views of the Astana skyline and the Ishim River.

Hotel The Veil - © Pietro Savorelli, courtesy Archea | The hotel’s dynamic look was inspired by ripples on the nearby Ishim River. Wood, Cor-Ten® and pigmented cement create a vertical weave, which is also reprised inside, using the same materials.

Location: Astana, Kazakhstan
Client: Private
Completion: 2021
Gross Floor Area: 8,000 m²
Architect and Interior Designer: Marco Casamonti/Archea Associati
Main Contractor: TOO Nurly Saulet

Photography by Pietro Savorelli, courtesy of Archea Associati

You might also like:

Contract 004

THE PLAN Contract 4 will be released in April 2022 as a supplement in THE PLAN 137. This fourth special issue of THE PLAN devoted to commercial interior design and architecture takes readers on a journey through the latest and most important Italian ... Read More