Villa Odaya: Ode to the Blue Hues of the Mediterranean

Overlooking the town of Cannes, France, with a breathtaking view of the Lérins islands, Villa Odaya pays homage to the Mediterranean and all its blue splendour.

The villa, which started as nothing more than a concrete block, is now a contemporary ode to the French Rivier and its chic indoor-outdoor style.

The owners tasked designers Emil Humbert and Christophe Poyet with conceptualising the interiors, which, today, offer the epitome of easy indoor-outdoor living with expansive floor-to-ceiling windows, luxuriously appointed al-fresco living spaces and a cacophony of natural materials inside further welcoming nature indoors.

So, for instance, the use of marble, brass, wood and rattan is prominent throughout the home with iconic pieces including a brass dining-room table designed by Humbert and Poyet, a large polished stainless-steel mirror, Mathilda chairs by Moroso, and “Idol” totems by Bernard Créa’h. Elsewhere, custom marble-inset floors punctuate the space underfoot and cane, metal and bronze fronts clad a dressing room.

Of course, the dominant hue of the Mediterranean is also reflected in multiple areas – and shades – in the home in an attempt to further connect the property with its surroundings.

There’s the finely edited study of blues and greens, mostly in the fabric choices, with a mix of designs from Robelli, Nobilis, Dedar, and Pierre Frey. The deep navy blue of a kitchen counter capped with white-grey marble, much like foam on a breaking wave and an expansive steel-blue rug in the living area reminds one of a winter’s day at sea.

While at the entrance to the master bedroom, a sky-blue console and an abstract geometric composition in blue hues pay tribute to the Italian architect and designer Gio Ponti, who also inspired the villa’s vertical composition.

About Humbert & Poyet

That of a Monegasque, Christophe Poyet, and a Parisian, Emil Humbert. The first is a CFAI interior architect and a graduate of the prestigious Académie Charpentier in Paris, the second is a DPLG architect (Graduated by the Government) and studied at the Ecole Nationale d’Architecture Paris-Belleville.

In 2007, they decided to join forces to create the Humbert & Poyet agency in the Principality. Thirteen years later, this young duo is among the finest in Monaco: restaurants such as Beefbar or Song Qi, showrooms, offices, villas, apartments, hotels. In Monaco always, but also in Paris, Berlin, London, Mexico City, Dubai, Hong Kong …