A kitchen retreat in the mountains of Courmayeur
Inside the “La Montanina” complex in Courmayeur, this apartment is set within a landscape of rare natural beauty and historic depth. On one side rises the majestic Mont Blanc range; on the other, the deep green of Abbé Henry Park, where centuries-old pines and firs envelop the architecture in a quiet, intimate atmosphere.
Here, a small holiday home takes shape for a young family: an intimate, essential and precious retreat, designed to reconnect with the slow rhythm of mountain life and with the authentic dimension of living.
The interiors are entirely wrapped in the warmth of wood, the true protagonist of the project. Antique oak flooring and wall cladding shape spaces that feel sheltered and welcoming, from the kitchen to the living area and through to the sleeping quarters, while small points of light set into the walls, like discreet jewels, trace the perimeter with a warm and constant presence.
The kitchen discreet presence
The kitchen occupies a pivotal point in the home, positioned between the indoor living area and the terrace — a true open-air living room, a mountain outdoor space conceived as a natural extension of the house. In this place of passage and connection, it becomes the element that links and balances the home's two main settings.
Designed to remain fully on view, the kitchen had to respond to a dual need: to be highly functional while also expressing an aesthetic quality capable of engaging with the surrounding space.
The project, curated by Silvia Zauli architect for Valcucine Milano Brera | Spotti, revolves around the Genius Loci island in Gloss Vitrum Wheat Field. Its warm, luminous tone resonates with the richness of the wood and reflects the space in golden nuances, emerging as a precious presence within the room.
In contrast, the wall composition defines the operational area with a more rigorous language. Angel Skin doors in Coal Black and an Absolute Black granite top shape an essential workspace with a quieter, more material character. The choice of black creates an elegant and discreet backdrop, capable of supporting the overall composition without drawing attention away from the lighter elements. It is a tone that recalls the depth of the Alpine landscape and the quiet strength of the mountains, while the soft-touch finish introduces a tactile dimension that feels gentle, muted and enveloping.
Within this balance, the kitchen becomes the true centre of gravity of the home: essential in its functions and measured in its presence, it interprets contemporary mountain living as an experience of connection, continuity and intimacy.
“All the furnishings are custom-designed in wood, in its purest and most primitive form. Logs with bark, untreated beams, reclaimed planks that, like the trees in the centuries-old forest opposite, remain stable and still, constant presences throughout the seasons, marking — through their material transformation — the passing of time within these spaces,” says architect Silvia Zauli.
Living materials that converse with the terrace overlooking the private park and fully participate in this vision. The ancient forest thus becomes a constant presence, entering the domestic space and accompanying its rhythm in a deep and silent relationship with nature.
Architecture by Silvia Zauli Architettura
Styling by Martina Sanzarello
Ph credits by Simone Furiosi
