Winners of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture 2019 announced

Wasit Natural Reserve by X Architects

A bamboo preschool, a Palestinian museum and a nature reserve built on an old rubbish dump are among the 2019 Aga Khan Award for Architecture winners.

The six winning projects of the award were selected from a shortlist of 20 buildings from 16 countries, which was revealed in April of this year.

Alongside the Arcadia Education Project by Saif Ul Haque Sthapati, the Palestinian Museum by Heneghan Peng Architects and Wasit Wetland Centre by X-Architects, the three other winning projects are the Revitalisation Of Muharraq in Bahrain, the Public Spaces Development Programme in Tatrstan and Alioune Diop University Teaching and Research Unit by IDOM.

Aga Khan Award for Architecture 2019 shortlist
Palestinian Museum, Palestine, by Heneghan Peng Architects. Photo by Cemal Emden

The Aga Khan Award for Architecture is a triennial award established in 1977 to celebrate architectural projects that “successfully address the needs and aspirations of communities in which Muslims have a significant presence”.

This year marks the fourteenth cycle of the programme, with winners chosen by a committee including David Chipperfield, Elizabeth Diller, David Adjaye, headed by Aga Khan – a Muslim spiritual leader.

The winners will each be awarded a share of a $1 million (£774,000) jackpot, which makes it one of the most lucrative architecture prizes in the world.

Aga Khan Award for Architecture 2019 shortlist
Arcadia Education Project, Bangladesh, by Saif Ul Haque Sthapati
, Photo by Sanndro di Carlo Darsa

The zigzagging Palestinian Museum by Heneghan Peng Architects is one of four new builds to have won a prize this year. The three others each serve an educational purpose.

IDOM’s prize-winning Alioune Diop University Teaching and Research Unit is a lecture building in Senegal, and the Arcadia Education Project by Saif Ul Haque Sthapat in Bangladesh is a bamboo preschool-cum-hostel for single women that offers vocational training facilities.

Public Spaces Development Programme, Russia, Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Tatrstan
Public Spaces Development Programme, Russia, by Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Tatrstan. Photo by Ivan Petrov

The third, The Wasit Wetland Centre by X Architects, is a nature reserve for 350 species of bird that was built from a rubbish dump in Sharjah. It exists to educate locals about the site’s unique environment.

Wasit Wetland Centre is the first time a project in the United Arab Emirates has won an Aga Khan Award for Architecture.

Alioune Diop University Teaching and Research Unit, Bambey, by IDOM.
Alioune Diop University Teaching and Research Unit, Senegal, by IDOM. Photo is by Chérif Tall

Similarly, the Revitalisation Of Muharraq world heritage site and the Public Spaces Development Programme – the revival of over 300 public spaces in Tatarstan – are the first projects in Bahrain and Russia respectively to have ever received the prize.

Revitalisation Of Muharraq, Bahrain, by Sheikha Mai Bint Mohammed Al Khalifa
Revitalisation Of Muharraq, Bahrain, by Sheikha Mai Bint Mohammed Al Khalifa. Photo is by Cemal Emden

The last Aga Khan Award for Architecture took place in 2016. The six winning projects included Zaha Hadid’s first building in Lebanon and a pink park by BIG.

The ceremony was held at the Al Jahili Fort – a World Heritage Site in Al Ain that itself received the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 2007 following a significant renovation.

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Welsh FA unveils simplified dragon as new visual identity

Football Association of Wales unveils new visual identity featuring simplified dragon logo

London design agency Bulletproof has developed a new visual identity for the Football Association of Wales, featuring a modernised version of its red dragon badge.

Bulletproof was tasked with overseeing the first major refresh of the association‘s branding in a decade. The brief called for a new identity that would encompass all football in Wales and embody the organisation’s motto of “Together, Stronger”.

Basing its design on the country’s heritage and traditions, the agency set out to create a system of graphic assets for the digital age with the dragon as its central element.

Other aspects of the project include a new typeface and a colour palette inspired by the Welsh landscape.

Football Association of Wales unveils new visual identity featuring simplified dragon logo

“We knew we needed to deliver more than just a badge refresh,” said Bulletproof. “We needed to create a modern, iconic brand that would incorporate the National Association, National Team, and Leagues & Cup competitions – allowing each individual facet to shine in its own right.”

The dragon emblem, which is found on the shirts of the Welsh national teams, was last updated in 2010. Since then, the Football Association of Wales has modernised its practices and wanted its new identity to reflect its progressive and diverse outlook.

Football Association of Wales unveils new visual identity featuring simplified dragon logo

The new dragon at the core of the branding project features a pared-back form with cleaner edges and sharper angles. This aesthetic aims to create a symbol that is bold and forward-looking, while referencing the traditions of the past.

“The execution was inspired by chiselled rock and slate carving,” the studio explained, “representing centuries of Welsh craft and industry, yet sufficiently simple and iconic to look – and feel – at home in today’s modern global sporting arenas.”

Football Association of Wales unveils new visual identity featuring simplified dragon logo

The logo previously featured an elaborate shield and a wreath underneath featuring the motto in Welsh. The simplified design removes the wreath to allow the dragon to be more prominent.

The wreath and the motto “Gorau Chwarae Cyd Chwarae” will be stitched below the back collar of the National Team shirts, along with an emblem of a daffodil, the Welsh national flower.

Football Association of Wales unveils new visual identity featuring simplified dragon logo

Bulletproof worked with a typographer to develop the new typeface used across the Football Association of Wales’s branding material. The Welsh Spirit font references both the chiselled forms of slate carving and traditional Trajan typography, as well as more modern condensed typefaces commonly used in sport.

A colour palette grounded in the Welsh landscape unifies the presentation of branded assets across various platforms, with the red and green traditionally associated with Wales featuring prominently.

Football Association of Wales unveils new visual identity featuring simplified dragon logo

The colours help to differentiate the various elements of Welsh football, from the national teams and governance, to the domestic tournaments and player development.

As part of the new identity’s launch, Bulletproof produced a film featuring a voiceover by Welsh musician and 6Music DJ, Cerys Matthews. The updated branding is currently being used across digital channels, and a new kit design will debut in November 2019.

English football club Wolverhampton Wanderers recently updated its own visual identity with a 3D versions of its wolf badge, while FC Barcelona simplified its crest to make it better suited to use in digital media.

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Materials unite old and new living spaces inside De Beauvoir Townhouse

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

Brickwork, terrazzo surfaces and green-hued furnishings add character to the interiors of this east London townhouse, which has been renovated and extended by architecture studio HÛT.

De Beauvoir Townhouse was previously host to dark and disconnected living spaces that were undesirable to its creative owners – a musician and a furniture designer.

For the overhaul of the home in London’s Hackney district, Shoreditch-based studio HÛT therefore focused on creating light-filled and spacious rooms that had “their own identity”.

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

“Spatially, the rooms didn’t flow well and it was important that our design created sightlines through the reception rooms and into the garden beyond,” the studio told Dezeen.

“The project had to do more than provide a good looking, functional house for a young couple – we used materials that will look more beautiful as they age and have a sense of longevity.”

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

An extension has been created at the rear of the property to accommodate an open-plan cooking and dining area that can be used to entertain guests.

Externally the volume is clad entirely in slim black bricks, complemented by a central black-framed swing door that grants access to the newly landscaped garden.

Part of the extension roof that slopes down to meet an existing boundary wall has been turned into a huge skylight, supported by a series of wooden beams.

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

The kitchen inside boasts khaki-green cabinetry, contrasting against the pale Douglas fir floorboards that run throughout the home.

Inhabitants can opt to eat at the timber dining table or around the marble-topped breakfast island, above which is suspended a lighting feature with exposed bulbs and wires.

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

The room’s rear wall has been punctuated with a picture window that frames views of the home’s living area.

Here, the practice has installed a fire surround made from Granby Rock – a terrazzo-like material composed of recycled building rubble, developed by London studio Assemble.

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

A black-framed glazed wall separates the space from the entrance hallway, where the floor has been clad with geometric tiles arranged in a seemingly random formation.

Douglas fir steps lead up to the first floor, where the practice has maintained a similar colour and material palette to visually tie together the old and new elements of the home.

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

In the bathroom, a standalone tub perches above a terrazzo-like floor flecked with orange stone, similar to the new fireplace.

Surfaces and joinery throughout the master bedroom have then been completed in sage green, nodding to the kitchen suite and velvet sofa in the living room.

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

“Despite being an architectural studio, many of the HÛT employees have their own side projects, such as furniture making, stationery design, chefs and photographers – we like texture, working with our hands and have an appreciation for textiles and textures,” added the studio.

“We think this project shows a bit of that.”

De Beauvoir Townhouse by HÛT

HÛT has been established since 2002 and is headed up by architect Andrew Whiting.

De Beauvoir Townhouse is one of several projects that the practice has completed on its home turf of east London –back in 2016 it added a “jewel-like” glazed dining room to a property in Mile End, which opens out onto a sunken outdoor patio.

In 2015 it also created a Corten steel extension for a Victorian-era brick house in London Fields.

Photography is by Emanuelis Stasaitis.

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Competition: win a copy of New Nordic Houses by Dominic Bradbury

Cabin Vindheim by Vardehaugen

In our latest competition, we’re offering readers the chance to win one of five copies of New Nordic Houses by Dominic Bradbury, which affords a glimpse into more than forty contemporary Scandinavian homes.

Curated by architecture and design journalist Dominic Bradbury, the book offers insights into homes in the region, complete with architectural plans.

We’ve teamed up with publisher Thames & Hudson to give away five hardback copies of New Nordic Houses, which will be published on 10 September.

New Nordic Houses by Dominic Bradbury and Thames & Hudson

The book brings together designs of “distinctively Nordic” homes, split into four sections: rural cabins, coastal retreats, townhouses and country homes.

Projects from esteemed Scandinavian architects including Tham & Videgård, Snorre Stinessen and Sigurd Larsen can be found within the book, captured by photographers including Marc Goodwin, Pasi Aalto and Rasmus Norlander.

Designed for him and his family, Jon Danielsen Aarhus’ Cabin Ustaoset is one of the 12 homes in the rural cabins chapter, alongside the cantilevering timber-clad cabins designed by Stinessen Arkitektur in Manshausen Island.

Manhausen Island Resort by Stinesson Arkitektur
Steve King captures the cantilevering cabins of Manhausen Island Resort by Stinesson Arkitektur

The book draws attention to the extreme climates found in the Nordic regions and how the design of houses has adapted to these conditions.

It also demonstrates the “ever-changing and dramatic natural light balanced by an intrinsic sense of warmth” in the region.

According to the book, the recent generation of Scandinavian architects are designing with “a new appetite for spatial exploration and changing lifestyles” but simultaneously retaining vernacular traditions and natural materials.

Traditional fireplaces act as an interior focal point appear in country homes for example, whilst remote cabins floating over fjords are designed to absorb the surrounding landscape.

Fleinvoer Refugium by TYIN Tegnestue and Rintala Eggertsson
TYIN Tegnestue & Rintala Eggertsson’s Fleinvoer Refugium is a coastal retreat. Photography is by Pasi Aalto

Of the 34 projects featured within the publication, Bradbury states in his introduction that most are designed to be off-grid and self-sustaining.

The designs of the houses favour eco-friendly materials and heating systems from green sources, such as solar panels and geothermal ground-source heat pumps.

Arctic Treehouse Hotel by Studio Puisto
Arctic Treehouse Hotel by Studio Puisto. Photography is by Marc Goodwin

“The book is full of fresh thinking about living spaces that are universal,” said the publisher. “There are details and grand ideas that can be applied to residential design anywhere.”

New Nordic Houses is published by Thames & Hudson and is available to buy online.

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Competition closes 27 September 2019. Five winners will be selected at random and notified by email, and his or her name will be published at the top of this page.

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MIT creates battery-free sensor for deep-sea and extraterrestrial exploration

MIT underwater sensor Piezo-Acoustic Backscatter System

An underwater internet of things monitoring the effects of climate change or sampling waters on distant planets is the dream of a group of MIT researchers who have created a battery-free underwater sensor.

The sensor is part of a communications system that avoids a key problem with underwater electronics, which is the pollution from the use of batteries.

Instead, the sensor harnesses two technologies: for energy, there’s the piezoelectric effect, where vibrations in certain materials generate an electrical charge.

And for transmitting data, there’s backscatter, which involves reflecting wireless signals back to a reader, and is commonly used in radio frequency identification (RFID) tags.

With these two methods combined, the almost-zero-energy system could operate for a long time with minimal human intervention.

The sensor doesn’t require any batteries to function underwater

Its creators at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have dubbed it the Piezo-Acoustic Backscatter System, and detailed their findings at last week’s SIGCOMM conference in Budapest, where they won “best paper”.

The paper’s co-author Fadel Adib said he had been inspired to start work on the system while watching the documentary series Blue Planet.

“It occurred to me how little we know of the ocean and how marine animals evolve and procreate,” he said.

Observation is limited in part because Wi-Fi and Bluetooth signals can’t be used under water: “And you don’t want to put batteries all over the ocean, because that raises issues with pollution,” he added.

The system would enable better monitoring of marine life and ocean temperatures — factors integral to better understanding climate change and predicting the rise in sea levels.

It also presents the opportunity for testing on other planets.

“How can you put a sensor under the water on [Saturn’s moon] Titan that lasts for long periods of time in a place that’s difficult to get energy?” said Adib. “Sensors that communicate without a battery open up possibilities for sensing in extreme environments.”

The zero-energy system can operate with minimal human intervention

The piezoelectric effect works because the sensors are made from a material that can transform pressure waves into electricity. When sound hits the sensor, it vibrates, generating the electricity that powers it.

Transmitting data usually requires a lot of power, but the system gets around this by using backscatter, which takes advantage of existing sound waves rather than generating new ones.

It changes to either reflect or absorb those sound waves, sending them towards a receiver that interprets it as binary code, the same as a computer.

The researchers say the system uses one million times less power than existing underwater sensors.

The system’s transmitter and receiver still require a power source, but they can be placed on ships or buoys where batteries are easier to replace.

Another recent project from MIT also realised an alternative form of sensor technology — plants. The university’s “cyborg botany” researchers altered a Venus flytrap to receive signals and operate as a motion sensor.

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WGNB designs all-black flagship store for fashion brand Juun.J

Juun.J flagship store in Seoul

Korean practice WGNB has designed the flagship shop for fashion brand Juun.J in Seoul as a cluster of black geometric forms.

Working with the motifs of circles, triangles and squares, the store occupies a black-rendered building that abuts a cafe with a steep triangular roof sweeping down to cover a glazed circular courtyard.

Juun.J flagship store in Seoul

WGNB drew on ideas from Tanizaki Junichiro’s essay on Japanese aesthetics and their subtlety, In Praise of Shadows, when conceptualising the building.

Entry into the store is through an open corridor that runs between the cafe and the courtyard, leading into the cube that houses Juun.J womenswear at ground floor level and menswear above.

Juun.J flagship store in Seoul

The ground floor womenswear space is the brightest and most open space in the store, with its white finishes and a high-gloss floor and walls that is designed to put “more emphasis on the darkness”.

Fitting rooms and clothes rails sit within dark niches, and sculptural elements have been introduced such as a black, textured girder-like rail in the centre of the space. The rail hangs above an elliptical pit in the floor filled with black stones.

Juun.J flagship store in Seoul

Above, the dark menswear space is dominated by hanging geometric forms – rectangular screens and semi-circles – with most of the clothing rails pushed to the edges of the spaces.

“The darkness, formed naturally by the intangible shadows of tangible objects hung in the space of the geometric structure, makes for an attractive look,” said the studio.

Juun.J flagship store in Seoul

Fitting rooms have been wrapped in a black curtain, introducing another black texture to the space. A triangular window looks down into the cafe below and brings a small amount of diffused light into the space.

The triangular cafe, operated by Felt Coffee, is lit by a high skylight, which draws light in and across the curved form of the ceiling onto a long wooden table and black counter below.

Juun.J flagship store in Seoul

Full-height glazing overlooks the courtyard opposite, in which a tree sits in a planter suspended by several steel cables, hovering above a pit of earth-coloured rocks surrounded by a walkway.

Glazing wraps around the exterior of the courtyard, providing glimpses into the shop from the street and also allowing for changing light conditions.

While the interiors use smooth black textures such as wood, metal and stone, the exterior has been covered entirely with a finely-textured black render.

Juun.J flagship store in Seoul

Fashion shops often require architects to take a conceptual approach in order to communicate a brand’s values. Studio Goss designed a brutalism-inspired shop for Kloke in Melbourne designed by Studio Goss, and Ciszak Dalmas’ design for a shop in Madrid was influenced by a fashion label’s own accessories.

Photography is by Yongjoon Choi.

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Think tank to research terraforming Earth founded by Moscow’s Strelka Institute

The Terraforming think-tank by the Strelka Institute

The Strelka Institute for Media, Architecture and Design in Moscow has launched a postgraduate course to research how the Earth could be terraformed to reverse the impacts of climate change.

Called The Terraforming, the interdisciplinary think tank will research ways in which the Earth could be dramatically transformed in the future to return it to a state where it is suitable for human life.

“The term terraforming usually refers to transforming the ecosystems of other planets or moons to make them capable of supporting Earth-like life,” explained the Strelka Institute.

“However, the looming ecological consequences of human activities suggest that in the decades to come we might need to terraform our own planet if it is to remain a viable host for Earth-like life.”

The Terraforming think-tank by the Strelka Institute
Programme director Benjamin Bratton will lead the think-tank

As human disruption of the ecosystem and manmade climate change reaches crisis levels, the Strelka Institute wants to examine how the Earth could be re-programmed – before it becomes unsustainable for life.

It will offer free tuition and a monthly stipend to designers, architects, urbanists, economists and filmmakers who join each of the five-month courses during the three-year research programme.

The Terraforming think-tank by the Strelka Institute
Architects, designers, urbanists and economists will work together on the course

Speaking at the launch, programme director Benjamin Bratton presented the case for examining urbanism “at a planetary level”.

Bratton explained that terraforming Earth would be a risky venture so creating a think tank dedicated to exploring the technical, philosophical, and ecological impacts of reworking the planet’s urban infrastructures was vital for the planet.

Cities – their construction, expansion and daily activity – are a major driver of this planet-wide destruction, with effects that are being felt in everywhere on Earth.

The United Nations has warned we have just 12 years left to take action against climate change and avert a global disaster.

The Terraforming think-tank by the Strelka Institute
Applications for the first cohort close at the end of October

The Terraforming will comprise of alternating modules of seminars, studio work and technical workshops, with field trips to remote areas of Russia. The goal is to produce a series of texts and films outlining their design proposals.

The Strelka Institute is taking applicants from architecture, urbanism, film, interaction design, software design, humanities and social sciences, game design, and economics backgrounds.

The first course will run for five months between 25 January and 5 July in 2020. The Terraforming will be a three-year research cycle, with applications for the first cohort closing on 31 October 2019.

Geoengineering is another intervention scientists and designers are investigating to help stop climate change. Proposals include pumping gas into the atmosphere to mimic a volcanic eruption.

UNStudio has developed the Coolest White paint to harness the albedo effect by painting cities so they reflect the sun’s rays and cool urban areas down.

Photography is by Lyudmila Savelieva for the Strelka Institute.

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Blue trim and terracotta tiles enliven Vancouver tapas joint by Ste Marie

Vancouver studio Ste Marie has designed a cafe in the city wrapped in tiles as a riff on cosy, compact Spanish tapas bars.

The local design studio modelled the eatery Como Taperia on Spain’s “standing-room-only” tapas bars in places like Barcelona’s lively Poble Sec neighbourhood and Madrid’s La Latina district.

Como Taperia by Ste Marie

“At Como, our goal was to provide a casual spot that clients could relax, have a little fun, and enjoy themselves,” said Ste Marie’s Rachel Martinuk, who led the design. “That’s all.”

“These spaces are tight, acoustics are loud, and you may or may not be offered a place to sit, favouring conversation and community over intimacy and comfort,” the firm added.

Como Taperia by Ste Marie

Square, terracotta tiles line the majority of the walls. The upper portions painted white to keep the space feeling fresh, complete with polished concrete floors.

This materiality of Como Taperia references the three brick chimneys of Barcelona’s industrial Poble Sec power station, in the area of Jardins de les 3 Xemeneies.

Como Taperia by Ste Marie

Bright blue is used for trim, meanwhile, and is a reference to the cobalt used by the late Spanish painter Joan Miró. The abstract and geometric details in the cafe were also informed by notable Spaniards Salvador Dali and Antoni Gaudí.

The cafe is a “homage to all we love about Spain,” said Ste Marie.

Como Taperia by Ste Marie

The 1,400-square-foot (130-square-metre) restaurant is a rectangular space and comprises a collection of high tables with stools, and a built-in upholstered booth that provides lower cushioned seating.

Accents of terracotta and dark red enliven the decor, while moments of brown marble and light wood panelling enhance to the materiality of the project.

Como Taperia by Ste Marie

The restaurant’s kitchen is concealed by a counter with a volume that extends down from the ceiling.

A portion of the storage volume has a drawing at the bottom with organic shapes in blue and red, evocative of paintings by German-French modernist Jean Arp.

Como Taperia by Ste Marie

In addition to this tapas spot, Ste Marie has developed a number of creative concepts for other eateries in the Canadian city, including a restaurant based on a fictional muse and an Italian cafe designed as if was the home of a fox.

Photography is by Conrad Brown.


Project credits:

Design principal: Craig Stanghetta
Design lead: Rachel Martinuk
Brand and graphic design: Glasfurd & Walker
Styling: Kate Richard

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$100 million repairs approved for San Francisco's sinking Millennium Tower

Millennium Tower by Handel Architects

A $100 million alteration designed to prop up the sinking and tilting Millennium Tower in San Francisco has been approved as tenants reach a tentative settlement with its developers.

Independent experts have endorsed the plan to fix the 58-storey luxury condominium tower, which has sunk 18 inches (45.7 centimetres) and tilted 14 inches (36 centimetres) since completion in 2008, reported the San Francisco Chronicle.

The “perimeter pile upgrade” solution, which has been approved by a panel including Stanford engineering professor Gregory Deierlein, involves drilling 52 new concrete foundation piles down from the basement to the bedrock.

It is estimated to cost $100 million (£81.8 million), which will be paid for as part of the insurance settlement.

Repairs result of year-long legal battle

News of the approved upgrade comes as a tentative settlement is reached between the building’s homeowners association, developer Millennium Partners and Transbay Joint Powers Authority, following a year-long legal battle.

While the settlements are not disclosed, all 400 tenants are expected to receive compensation for the tower’s sinking.

Attorney Niall McCarthy, who is representing 125 tenants across 88 units, told the San Francisco Examiner that it included individual lawsuits for roughly 250 tenants, and a class action lawsuit for the remaining 150.

“Because [the] settlement is tentative we can’t discuss [the payments] but they are very significant payments for individual unit owners,” said McCarthy. “The clients are all extremely happy.”

Millennium Tower is tallest residential building in San Francisco

Designed by Handel Architects, the Millennium Tower is currently the tallest residential building in San Francisco, and the city’s third tallest overall. Its sinking was first discovered in 2016 through a study produced by engineering firm Arup.

Millennium Partners blames Transbay Joint Powers Authority (TJPA) in part for the the tower’s subsidence, claiming that the construction of the nearby Transbay Transit Center is adding to the issue. TJPA said it bears “no responsibility for the tilt and excessive settlement” of the Millennium Tower.

The tower’s movement caused further concern in 2017 when engineering company Allana Buick & Bers found that it had dislodged the curtain wall away from the main structure, leaving a gap where smoke and fire could quickly spread.

Photograph is courtesy of Shutterstock.

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Eight São Paulo apartment renovations that make the most of their Brazilian heritage

We’ve rounded up eight overhauled São Paulo apartments that show off Brazilian architecture talent, including a home for an illustrator and a renovated 1950s residence.


Oscar Freire Apartment by Claudia Bresciani and Júlia Risi

A clear folding door inside this apartment by architects Claudia Bresciani and Júlia Risi allows the client, an illustrator, to enjoy privacy between the main living space and a private studio. The renovation of the Oscar Freire apartment involved restoring original herringbone parquet flooring and creating an open floor layout that lets natural light into every space.

Find out more about Oscar Freire apartment ›


VLP Apartment by Pascali Semerdjian Arquitetos

VLP Apartment by  Pascali Semerdjian Arquitetos 

A U-shaped bookshelf wraps itself around the interior of this apartment’s living area providing ample space for books and room for a reading nook. The custom shelving became the livelihood of the project and drove Pascali Semerdjian’s design choices for the rest of the space. Other features include a raised wooden bar counter built into an existing cement column and custom designed cabinetry and furnishings.

Find out more about VLP Apartment ›


Tucumã Apartment by Cupertino Arquitetura

Tucumã Apartment by Cupertino Arquitetura

Cupertino Arquitetura persevered the historic charm of this 1953 apartment renovated for the client who inherited the 100 square-metre space from their grandmother. The layout of Tucumã Apartment was once defined by two outdoor areas used as venting grounds for the kitchen and bathrooms, but was revitalised by two gardens filled with trees and plants. These green spaces allow natural light and cross ventilation to enter the apartment.

Find out more about Tucumã apartment ›


Compact fit by Casa 100 Arquitetura

Compact Apartment by Casa 100 Architecture

The size and simplicity of hotel rooms influenced the design of this 24-square-metre apartment, designed by Casa 100 Architecture. It efficiently uses its small area by incorporating space saving features that include combining the kitchen and wardrobe into a single unit and using multi-functional furniture pieces.

Find out more about Compact apartment ›


Compact studio by Tria Arquitetura

Compact studio by TRIA Arquitetura

Brazilian studio TRIA designed this tiny apartment with flexibility and privacy in mind. Its features include a perforated concrete brick wall which provides ample space for a sleeping nook and custom-made furnishings.

Find out more about Compact studio ›


Apartment in Copan by SuperLimão

Apartment in Copan by SuperLimão

Local studio SuperLimão reintroduced the original exposed ribbed ceiling and concrete walls in this apartment. The apartment resides inside Edifício Copan, a building completed by well-known Brazilian modernist Oscar Niemeyer in 1961. The space is ridden with industrial style elements, including galvanised steel tubes that line the walls and the ceilings.

Find out more about Apartment in Copan ›


Pompeia apartment by Vitrô Arquitetura 

When reconfiguring the layout of this apartment, to provide continuous circulation, Vitrô Arquitetura uncovered red brick walls and concrete pillars. The exposed features guided other design choices made in the space, including using a concrete slab as a bathroom counter and monochrome coloured matte cabinet in the kitchen.

Find out more about Pompeia apartment ›


Ap Cobogó apartment renovation by Alan Chu

Ap Cobogó apartment by Alan Chu 

Cobogó serve as partitions in this apartment designed by Alan Chu. The project, called Ap Cobogó, relies on the hollow ceramic blocks, used by architects such as the late Oscar Niemeyer, to create separate rooms. When light passes through the ventilation bricks unique patterns and light effects produce around the apartment. Custom designed furniture, such as a wooden side table, also implement the cobogó pattern.

Find out more about Ap Cobogó apartment ›

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