The Times Magazine 67narrow country lanes bordered by dry stone
walls, olive trees and the odd traditional trullo.
“It’s almost like a biblical landscape,” notes
Pineau-Valencienne. “You feel you could bump
into a guy in a white toga with a donkey at
any moment.” What really sold her, however,
was the breathtaking view of the Adriatic Sea.
“I immediately fell in love with it,” she recalls.
“I said to myself, ‘This is the place to be.’”
To design the house, Pineau-Valencienne- the daughter of one of the best-known
figures in French business, Didier Pineau-
Valencienne – called upon her longtime friend,
the Paris-based interior designer Roxane
Rodriguez, who grew up steeped in antiques.
Rodriguez’s father is the president of the
Paris fleamarket and she herself is best known
for developing the original interiors concept
for the Ladurée tearooms. “She’s extremely
refined and has an incredible sensibility,”
enthuses Pineau-Valencienne.
For this project, Rodriguez decided to team
up with local architect Pierangelo Caramia,
and took her inspiration from the region’s
vernacular buildings. She noted the thick,
whitewashed walls and the staircases that
seem to lead to nowhere. She also adapted
their arched forms and oculi. “We wanted it to
contemplate the surrounding nature. There’s
something extremely meditative about the
view,” explains Rodriguez.
Initially, Pineau-Valencienne envisioned
the house as a holiday home for her and her
husband, the reggae DJ and music producer
Selecta Kza. But she ended up falling so
in love with it that she has found it difficult
to leave. Having worked for two decades in
advertising and business consultancy in Paris,
in 2020 she decided to open a concept store in
Ostuni, where she presents an eclectic range
of objects, including wax statuettes of the
Virgin Mary, paintings by French artist Alma
Vallé and photography by her sister Josephine
Vallé Franceschi, as well as brightly hued
dresses designed by Rodriguez.
As for her house’s interiors, both women
agreed that their watchword would be
simplicity. “I’ve done things in my career that
were very sophisticated, even baroque,” relates
Rodriguez. “But nature is so forceful here that
we wanted to get back to basics. Our idea was
almost for a non-decoration.”
The framework was kept resolutely neutral,
with irregular limewashed walls. Rodriguez
slightly curved the ceiling and created two
picture windows to underscore the view. She
also added a fireplace inspired by one in the
Parisian home of her close friend, art dealer
Florence Maeght. As for the layout, it could
hardly be more uncomplicated – a spacious
living room with a bedroom and tiny
functional bathroom at either end.
The furnishings are a happy, laidback mix.
The 19th-century English leather armchair in
the sitting room and the sideboard in the
dining area were unearthed at the Paris
fleamarket. There are kilims from the
collection of Pineau-Valencienne’s father, as
well as some distinctive Italian touches – the
Murano glass chandelier, the ceramic horse
on the mantel created by Nicola Fasano. The
kitchen stools and bedside tables were made
by a local craftsman, while other pieces were
acquired from the stylish Le Icone boutique inCisternino – among them, a table in the guest
bedroom that was originally used for drying
pasta. The artworks are equally low-key. “We
wanted unimportant works, so they wouldn’t
compete with the view,” affirms Rodriguez.
“A lot of people think that the house
isn’t new,” says Pineau-Valencienne. “They
believe it’s an old masseria [farmhouse]
I renovated, which is what I wanted. For
me, it’s a wholehearted success.” nHome!
Clockwise from this
image: the bedroom,
with inherited antique
kilim; alley in Ostuni;
the bathroomGETTY IMAGES