Arca di Noe

In the mood of the boom period of the late 80s, Nigel Coates first building was narrative even in the way it was built. The building appears to have been carved from solid rock, perhaps by the Etruscans. In reality, however, it was constructed with a steel frame and sprayed concrete called Gunnite. Visitors are able to dine in an archeologically charged environment that has changed little over millennia of use. All the fittings, including the furniture, were designed specially for this building. Coates Noah chair, designed for this space, is in the permanent collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum.