On his first visit to hushed, private Félicité, east of La Digue in the Seychelles archipelago of islands, architect Tom Foster was “silenced by the beauty of the location, perfect and untouched,” he says. The associate director of London’s Studio RHE and his team were posted in this Indian Ocean oasis to commence work on Six Senses Zil Pasyon, the newest outpost for the Bangkok-based hospitality company—and the island’s first resort.
The responsibility of encroaching on such immaculate territory weighed on Foster but made him all the more determined to “remain as invisible to the surroundings as possible, by introducing spaces that complemented and celebrated, rather than competed with the environment,” he explains.
This unspoiled setting was indeed a strong starting point for Foster, but as he and his colleagues became further acquainted with Félicité and grew enraptured by the wildlife, vistas, and the rock forms found there, no additional sources of inspiration were necessary. The buildings, including a village of 30 oceanside villas topped with shingle roofs, nod to indigenous Creole architecture and embrace local materials like timber and granite. “The residences are geometric forms clad in granite, and each has a glass-bottomed pool that doubles as a roof light,” says Foster. Sustainability was also top of mind: an existing seawall in poor condition was “rebuilt and disguised” as the property’s main swimming pool.
Blending the hotel into the topography so effortlessly reflects the brand’s ethos, which spans such touchstones as wellness and global sensitivity, says Apiwat Anukularmphai, corporate creative and design director for Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas. Linking the contemporary interiors with the lush outdoors heightens this impact for guests, he adds, so they “have a great experience, whether outside during the daytime or in full privacy at night, no matter where they are in the villas.” This led to a purposefully muted design scheme, with clean lines and subdued fabrics and tiles that amplify the colorful vegetation integrated throughout the property.
Anchored in a locale that is “pure and pristine, we only need to translate the island’s boulders, sapphire ocean, and orchids to the interior design and mix it with local culture and life,” explains Anukularmphai. And for a true one-with-nature feel, the spa, featuring an elevated saltwater pool and a meditation pavilion, boasts treatment villas set within a dramatic landscape of weathered rock.
