The Private Room
A unique experience in an exclusive atmosphere
The lounge has always been the most intimate and private place at La Caravella, reserved for my father Franco’s friends and the powerful of the earth. Many times, in the 1960s, Andy Warhol dined there, hosted for the first time by Gore Vidal. He was among the protagonists of the first exhibition dedicated to Pop Art, set up more than fifty years ago right in Amalfi at the Ancient Arsenals of the Maritime Republic.
He suggested painting the barrel ceiling and the walls of the lounge, previously white: the first in black, and the latter in purple and red, respectively. Unfortunately, the lighting of the time, provided by elegant ceramic lanterns, did not offer our guests sufficient light to visually appreciate the quality of our dishes. Reluctantly, I decided to repaint the room in lighter colors. And only God knows how many times I had to endure Gore Vidal’s reproaches for having “erased” the only room in the world painted by the king of Pop Art. Today, great architects from all over the world offer me their advice to restore the environment created by Warhol.
But I prefer that of that season, among the many unforgettable ones at La Caravella, only the memory remains.