São Paulo, Brazil
Architects Amanda Castro and Giovana Giosa, from Studio AG, have completed the renovation of the BGP Apartment, a 350m² duplex penthouse located in the city of São Paulo, Brazil.
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 walls, 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 and 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 two 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, the designers 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 lighter and more 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.
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 pool and access steps overlap this deck in monolithic stone volumes.
On the upper floor, in order to redistribute the internal areas, the designers 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 granulite slats in the external area with a 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, the designers 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.
Project: BGP Apartment
Architects: Studio AG Arquitetura
Design Team: Amanda Castro, Giovana Giosa, Amanda Domingues, Camilla Gubeissi, Izabela Figueiredo, Gabriela Guimarães, Igor Pratis.
Lighting: Studio AG Arquitetura
Engineer: Construmar
Client: Private
Photographer: Fran Parente
