Villa Sheherezade by Dimorestudio: Moorish Architecture, Nautical Memory and Mediterranean Luxury
At Villa Sheherezade, the Adriatic is present both outside the windows and within the palette of the rooms. The white-stone villa occupies a clifftop in Dubrovnik, facing Lokrum and the city’s fortified walls. Dimorestudio’s renovation works with its Moorish architectural character, drawing attention to the arches, deep openings and transitions between enclosed rooms and open terraces. [1] [2]
The studio describes a material palette that includes walnut, bamboo and silk, with blues and yellows linking the interiors. In Andrea Ferrari’s photographs, these ingredients form rooms with distinct moods. Pale walls and strong daylight give some spaces an airy quality; deeper colours and clustered lights make others feel more inward-looking. [1]
The arch as a recurring frame
Blue surrounds give the arched windows a clear outline against the lighter walls. In a bedroom, three narrow openings sit above a long upholstered bench. Their proportions establish a rhythm that continues in the framed panels below, while small lamps bring the scale back towards the bed. The sea remains visible as a band of changing colour within this orderly arrangement. [1]
A passage repeats the same idea at the scale of movement. Successive dark arches frame one another above a striped floor, creating a long view through the interior. The arch is therefore more than a decorative motif: it helps describe the depth of the house. A room beyond becomes visible before its furnishings can be fully understood. [1]
Furniture that changes the tempo
The dining room brings several different rhythms together. A broad table rests on cylindrical supports with closely spaced vertical strips. Slender chairs with yellow seats surround it, while two pleated pendant shades hang overhead. Beneath the furniture, dark and pale floor stripes run across the room, giving the otherwise relaxed setting a strong directional pattern. [1]
Plants gather beside the window and climb into the height of the room. Their irregular outlines soften the repeated lines of the table bases, chairs and floor. The tall, lightly curtained opening allows the garden to remain part of the composition. The effect depends on the relationship between these elements, rather than on any one spectacular object. [1]
Bedrooms are more restrained. Warm timber, muted upholstery and small cushions concentrate colour around the furniture. A broad headboard in one room also establishes a horizontal datum beneath the windows. Shelving and bedside lighting stay close to the bed, giving the spaces a sense of enclosure even where the views extend towards the water. [1]
From daylight to a deeper interior
The bar changes the atmosphere decisively. Dark red surfaces, reflective panels and clustered hanging lights create a dense, luminous setting around a compact counter. Rounded stools and a pale striped floor keep the composition legible. The scene offers a concentrated counterpart to the bright rooms and terraces elsewhere in the villa. [1]
Outside, a curved white balustrade meets the uninterrupted blue of the sea. Striped chairs and low tables provide places to occupy the view without filling it. The contrast clarifies the renovation’s appeal: the interiors have enough detail to hold attention, while their openings repeatedly return it to the landscape. Villa Sheherezade’s identity is built through that alternating focus, from the grain and pattern of a room to the much larger horizon beyond. [1] [2]
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