Set on the azure shores of the Atlantic in the former Portuguese town of El Jadida, located just south of Casablanca, Mazagan Beach Resort is the latest chapter in Sol Kerzner‘s storybook of otherworldly design fantasies. The property sprawls out over 617 acres, and includes 500 rooms and suites, an 18-hole golf course, casino, and 20,000-square-foot spa.

Back for their 14th collaboration with Kerzner, the designers at Wilson Associates sought to create a new interpretation of Moroccan design. “We wanted to create something fresh and innovative with pieces of Morocco in it, but not like looking at a history book of Moroccan design,” explains Wilson Associates’ design director and principal, James Carry. Jeffrey Beers, another longtime Kerzner collaborator, handled the Sanctuary nightclub.

As with every one of Kerzner’s resorts, the statement lobby is paramount. For the grand atrium of this Grand Riad, Wilson’s design team created a central space upon which each main element of the resort, from the F&B outlets to the casino, could be accessed. “It is actually bigger than any atrium space we’ve ever designed for Kerzner,” explains Carry, adding that the glassed-in space features a center fountain and bar and tea lounge. “It is quite unique and creates a very strong social center.”

What truly sets Mazagan apart from its counterparts is the re-interpretation of the Moorish design that has become overused in the Middle East region. “If you were looking for classical Moroccan detailing you might be disappointed,” Carry says. “In everything from the furnishings and the fabrics to the architectural detailing we played with proportion, over-scaled patterns, and distorted them so that it was more of a ‘blur of the eye.'”

This is perhaps most evident in Sel de Mer, one of the eight restaurants. The dramatic space features theatrical lighting, over-scaled backlit panels with Moroccan detailing, an abundance of copper elements, and an ocean wave-inspired ceiling, made of undulating helix shaped timbers. “We tried to create something very high energy-a 6 p.m. or 4 a.m. type of space,” Carry says.

There were many firsts for Wilson Associates here, and one of them was an opportunity to be involved in the entire project-master planning, architecture, design, and detailing, a holistic approach which shows in the cohesive design that prevails throughout. “We wanted to design something newer, fresher, and more of a hip place to be,” Carry says.

Mazagan Beach Resort
Morocco
Owner Kerzner International
Architecture Firms Jaouad Msefer (local
architect); Northpoint (conceptual
architect); Norr Limited (operational
architect); and EDSA (landscape architect)
Interior Design Firm Wilson Associates,
Dallas
Interior Design Project Team James
Carry, design principal; Kurt Heimsath,
project manager; Sydney Teegarden and
Lisa Patton, interior designers; and Liza
Setiawan and Karen Prigmore,
architectural designers
Sanctuary Nightclub Interior Designer
Jeffrey Beers International, New York
Contractors BESIX Dubai Design
Development (general contractor);
Depa Limited (interior contractor)
Purchasing Firm Parker International
Lighting Consultant Craig Roberts
Associates Inc.
Engineering Consultant Norr Limited
Engineering
Kitchen Design Food Systems
Graphics The Brand Union
Artwork Art Dallas
Golf Course Gary Player Design
Stone Contractor Miller Drunk Specialty
Contracting
MAIN LOBBY AND TEA LOUNGE
Fixtures Diamond-Life Lighting
Orange Chair Fabric Bergamo
Ottoman Hair on Hide Leather Moore
& Giles
Custom Carpet Crossley Axminster
MORJANA
Lighting Fixtures Moresque Lighting
Chair Upholstery Donghia
Red Onyx Miller Drunk Specialty
Contracting
Banquette Fabric Osborne & Little
HAMMAM
Center Scrub Table with White Marble
Miller Drunk Specialty Contracting
Lighting Fixtures Diamond-Life Lighting
ROYALE SUITE STUDY
Fixtures and Sconces Moresque Lighting
Artwork Art Dallas
Window Treatment S. Harris
Carpet Clayton & Miller
ROYALE SUITE LIVING
Sofa Custom with Highland Court Fabric
Window Outer Treatments Kravet Fabrics
Window Inner Treatments Osborne &
Little
Carpet Clayton & Miller Carpet
SEL DE MER
Custom Metal Screens Pino Meroni
Hanging Lighting Fixtures Kayak Lighting
OLIVES RESTAURANT OUTDOOR CORRIDOR
Exterior Lanterns Moresque Design & Decoration
Interior Bronze Fixtures Diamond- Life Lighting
Interior Main Fixture Kalmar Lighting
ROYALE SUITE BATH CORRIDOR
Gold Marble Flooring Miller Drunk
Lighting Moresque Lighting
Window Treatment Steven Harsey Textiles
Jacuzzi Tub Kaledewei Bath Products with Kohler taps
Hardware on Doors Trillium