Les Clarisses Boutique Hotel: calming atmospheres with Array and Flamingo

There are projects like Les Clarisses Boutique Hotel where straight after crossing the threshold it becomes clear that the design of the lighting has been carefully thought about. Interior designer Susanna Cots confirms this aim of creating calming and harmonious atmospheres, as one would expect from an historic, refurbished convent building where guests come to wind down. The sandy colour scheme, the organic forms and the lighting approach with which Vibia collaborated, define an architecture that is filled with history, while simultaneously adding soul which is palpable throughout its different spaces.

The quest for wellbeing through lighting reaches its maximum sensorial expression in this project authored by interior designer Susanna Cots. Nowhere could be more appropriate than an old convent in the pursuit of peace and quiet, a refuge of silence and connection, witness to the passing of time, a place to enjoy a few days away from the hubbub of daily life.

Vibia The Edit - Hotel Boutique Les Clarisses - Bind Solo & Circle

The story behind Les Clarisses Boutique Hotel dates back to the 17th Century when it was an aristocratic residence, after the Spanish Civil War however it was converted into the Santa Clara Convent by the Dominican order of nuns located in the old city of Vic, within the province of Barcelona. The building had to be adapted to the comforts modern guests expect nowadays during its transformation into a hotel while maintaining its original character. Along these lines the use of quality materials such as wood and stone adds to the hotel’s soul, through its subtle design of elegant lines where organic forms and the earthy colour scheme take on a special significance.

Vibia The Edit - Hotel Boutique Les Clarisses - Array

However, what really attracts one’s attention is the lighting approach, starting with the way that natural light is captured by the building’s windows which was a key factor in the framing of a cohesive architectural, and almost psychological lighting scheme for this project. A lighting scheme that is respected in all the rooms which was conceived for the creation of warm atmospheres that favour rest and disconnection. The interior designer recognises that light is one of the most important factors in her outlook, her life and her work, and admits that her hyper-sensitivity to light helps her understand “how lighting influences our emotions, our energy levels and how the character of a space is defined.”

Vibia collaborated with Les Clarisses Boutique Hotel in one of its most important spaces of any hotel design, the lobby, with the Array collection designed by Umut Yamac based on the use of a filament or thread to create dynamic, floating hanging light sculptures. The choice of these large pieces by Cots is explained by her reasoning that “they harmonise and fill the space with light while at the same time adding a touch of colour.” The exceptional height of the space and the view upwards from the ground floor through the different rings that hide the light source, generate a very pleasant and relaxing illusion of movement, perfect for welcoming guests.

The hotel also features the Flamingo collection by Antoni Arola that illuminates one of the hotel restaurant’s private rooms. The interior designer explains how she has been choosing it for years because “having a slender section it allows us to maintain a view of the space and focus only on the light it projects.” The ambient lighting from Flamingo through its translucent thermoplastic diffuser along with the spotlight from its LED terminal combine good looks with a poetic sensibility and performance, radiating light.

Vibia The Edit - Hotel Boutique Les Clarisses - Flamingo

The pursuit of creating atmospheres that promote wellbeing and introspection, which help foment and reinforce harmony within these soulful hotel spaces is an important value shared by Susanna Cots and Vibia. In her own words she explains: