Architects Amanda Castro and Giovana Giosa, from Studio AG, carried out a complete renovation of this 350m² duplex penthouse, located in the city of São Paulo, Brazil.
Gourmet space and outdoor area:
Floor in gray granilite concrete slats with handpicked aggregates.
Wooden pergola.
Metal sideboard with wooden boxes in colored lacquer.
Barbecue cabinet in wood veneer and sintered stone framing the existing window
Organic wood log table
Chairs with metallic structure and leather
TV room and living room:
Tauari wood flooring
Walls in terracor texture
Partitions / Doors glass panels with film and wood
Wooden panel for access to the toilet and cloakroom
Portico and cellar in wood veneer
TV unit with metal shelves, and sideboard with wood veneer and straw
Kitchen:
Floor and half wall in green tile
White quartz countertop with pigments
Cabinets in green lacquer, beige lacquer and wood veneer
Metal stools with straw seat
Double bedroom:
Tauari wood flooring
Carpentry in wood veneer, white lacquer and straw
fabric headboard
ceramic light fixtures
Wood and straw chair
leather armchair
wooden lining
Office:
Tauari wood flooring
Joinery in wood veneer and orange lacquer
wooden lining
Wooden and glass frames
Wooden and marble trolley
linen armchair
Wine House:
Tauari wood flooring
Wood veneer joinery
wooden lining
Steam room: Atlas tablet
The clients, a young couple from Rio de Janeiro, wanted to bring a bit of the Carioca soul to this apartment, something authentic and different from the wooden paneling throughout the apartment. To meet these expectations, translucent and rhythmic wood and glass surfaces were created, combined with white wall plans, without losing warmth and personality.
The project was born from the concern to reorganize the space and highlight its potential, in line with the desire to create a light and permeable environment. Light, unusual contrasts and mixtures of materials reinforce the intention to transform São Paulo into a home for customers.
The apartment was dark, heavily paneled, and its layout did not emphasize the view. The main alteration on the ground floor was the reconfiguration of the staircase and social entrance. The access door to the social hall limited the layout and opened the social part in an unwanted way. Its inversion allowed a breath that gently welcomes the residents and organizes flows and functions, housing the cloakroom and the toilet.
The existing staircase had its format changed to reorganize the environment. Previously sectioned into 2 flights, it occupied a larger space and made access to the upper floor and the toilet difficult.
To unify the living room with the veranda, we incorporated the existing structure through a large wooden portico that receives the cellar and frames the view.
Another major change was the demolition of the roof slab of the current gourmet space to make room for a light and fluid structure made of wood and glass. Light and shadow permeate the design of the pergola, which contributes to the luminosity of the main room.
Still on this floor, the external area of the apartment was also completely modified. Two existing windows were covered to allow the deployment of a vertical garden, which by covering all the walls creates a unique plan that embraces the environment and brings the feeling of an urban refuge to the apartment. The reformulation of this space could house, in addition to the swimming pool, a new lounge and a sauna.
The volume of the sauna delimits the pool space through a wooden block that extends to the sofa. The pool and access steps overlap this deck in monolithic stone volumes.
On the upper floor, in order to redistribute the internal areas, we integrated the existing balcony, which was disproportionate in size to the other environments. This solution made it possible to expand the closet, suites and office and allowed the creation of a planter and the enhancement of the privileged view.
The choice of covering materials was based on gently contrasting the white walls with natural elements such as wood, concrete and straw, which allude to the Carioca essence. This allusion appears in the meticulous choice of colors and textures.
The use of sand-tone concrete granilite slats in the external area with layout carefully aligned with the internal floor, promotes a visual continuity between the spaces. Colors are punctually inserted, directing the viewer’s attention and relaxing the environment.
In the kitchen, the choice of green tile for covering the floor and half of the wall dialogues with the joinery in lacquer in a similar tone. As for the furniture, we played with contrasts between different textures and colors, which occasionally appear in the Benjamin sofa, by De Carvalho, and in the Uchiwa armchair by HAY.
