Photos: Carolina Lacaz / Disclosure
I discovered this building when I was having lunch in his neighborhood, Alameda Campinas in Jardins in São Paulo, and at the time I was impressed with its facade that looked like a large vertical garden! I finally managed to record the Open House of one of your apartments, and can I talk? The interior is just as interesting as the exterior!
The original project of 280m² is from fifty years ago, signed by the architect Miguel Juliano. And it was up to architect Ana Sawaia and designer Paulo Alves to renovate its interior, preserving all its originality and modernist essence. Integrated social area, arches on the ceiling, indirect lighting that creates an intimate atmosphere, impeccable furniture, sauna in the bathroom… This week’s Open House is really unmissable!
I talked with Ana and Paulo and had a complete tour of the apartment. In addition to the beauty of the project, very creative and functional solutions were found for its renovation, such as covering the original floor with materials capable of preserving it and also the sliding door that separates the office from the integrated social area for greater privacy.
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Casa de Valentina: Can you tell me a little bit more regarding the outside of the building?
Ana Sawaia: The generous planters projected in cantilever over the urban façade offer the metropolis a veritable green cascade. The side facades are glazed with anodized aluminum frames that follow the rhythm of the exposed concrete vaulted structure.
CV: And how was the structure of the apartment conceived?
Ana Sawaia: Regarding the structure, it is worth pointing out the ingenuity of the solution contained in the project by architect Miguel Juliano, 50 years ago: thanks to the stability of the curved section, it was possible to reuse the metallic forms to concrete the next vault just 24 hours following the previous one, which he was already able to stand up straight. The sequence of arches quickly appeared, like a Roman aqueduct, penetrating the interior of the apartments and organizing the spaces.
CV: What was taken into account in the reform?
Ana Sawaia: In the renovation, we tried to eliminate the excess finishes of previous occupations to once once more make the structure of this beautiful example of modern São Paulo architecture a protagonist.
CV: How was the space redivided?
Ana Sawaia: We removed some walls to integrate the kitchen and office into the living room. We proposed to offer half of the apartment’s 280m² to a free space for socializing with the family: a young couple with two teenage children.
CV: And what was the material used on the floor?
Ana Sawaia: To further unify the social area, speed up the work and avoid further demolitions, we opted to apply polymeric cement over the different existing floors. The same solution was applied to the wet areas, ensuring tightness. In the three bedrooms and in the hallway leading to them, we restored the original wooden flooring, filling in existing gaps by relocating pieces belonging to the old service room on the original floor plan. On the porch and in the shower stalls we use modular wooden decks, bringing a more cozy touch.
CV: The lighting in the project is also beautiful. How was it planned?
Ana Sawaia: For lighting, a pleasant surprise: the internal curves of the vaults turned out to be excellent light reflectors. We have reduced the use of plaster ceilings to the minimum space necessary for the air conditioning piping.
