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      Retroscena is a colourful apartment renovation by La Macchina Studio

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      Italian architecture office La Macchina Studio has renovated a 1950s apartment in Rome, revealing original terrazzo floors and adding bold colours.Set in the Italian capital’s Appio Latino quarter, the mid-century one-bedroom apartment already had Venetian stone floors.

      The original terrazzo floors have been restored
      La Macchina Studio uncovered them and enlisted local craftsmen to restore the terrazzo, while the apartment was transformed into a “surreal set where reality and fiction coexist in a quasi-theatrical scene”.
      “With Retroscena, we wanted to enhance the irreverent and surreal nature of the architectural story,” said studio founders Gianni Puri and Enrica Siracusa.
      “It is inextricably linked to its photographic alter-ego by playing with colour contrasts, graphic motifs and unexpected incursions.”

      Pops of primary colour stand out against white walls

      Walls and certain elements have been painted bright white, to create a neutral backdrop for the graphic pops of colour.
      An arched doorway and a low, midcentury-style cabinet in the living area are painted a matching bright blue.

      A blue-painted wooden doorway leads to the bedroom
      A pair of zesty lemon-yellow fabric curtains can be pulled across to separate the living area from the kitchen diner and screen off the door to the balcony.
      The arching doorway juts out almost a metre from the wall, screening the kitchen furniture from the view of the hallway. The blue-lacquered wood marks the entrance to the bedroom.

      Yellow curtains can screen the living room off
      A red wall-hanging placed above the sofa marks another splash of primary colour.
      Another doorway set flush to the wall opens to reveal the two-room bathroom. In the first room, a bath and shower are all surrounded by square ceramic white tiles, set in dark grouting to create a graphic check mosaic.

      White square tiles form a check mosaic in the bathroom
      A pointy arched doorway leads to the second half of the bathroom, where a toilet and a bidet face each other across a sink, which is framed by the arch.

      Studio Strato creates cosy reading den in renovated Rome apartment

      Peacock-blue enamelled walls and a dimmable ring light mirror above the sink add to the theatrical styling of the bathroom.

      An arched doorway frames the sink
      In the bedroom, the floor has a ruddy hue, the result of a brick-red micro cement treatment applied by La Macchina Studio. A low-hanging orb-style pendant light and peach velvet curtains create a softer aesthetic.
      Pinkish cement flooring also differentiates the entryway. Built-in white wardrobes in the hallway conceal a hidden room that is used as a study.

      The bedroom has a micro cement floor
      La Macchina Studio was founded by Puri and Siracusa in 2013 and is based in Rome.
      More exciting Roman apartment renovations include a flat with terracotta-coloured walls and an apartment with a reading den visible through a porthole-style cutout.
      Photography is by Paolo Fusco.

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      Nendo completes Marsotto showroom in Milan with dimpled marble facade

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      Passersby can perch in the facade of Italian marble brand Marsotto’s new showroom in Milan, which has been designed by multidisciplinary studio Nendo.From afar, the front of Marsotto’s showroom in Milan’s Brera district looks as if it’s sealed up by blocks of veiny white marble.
      To achieve this, Nendo lined the entire facade – including the flush front door – in marble tiles, being careful to set them in line with the existing stonework on the building.

      Top image: people can perch in the showroom’s facade. Above: the facade appears to be sealed up with marble
      At one point the tiles dip inwards to form a small nook where passersby on the street can sit.

      “Because the traffic circle facing the showroom will soon be greened and turned into a small park, part of the facade was made into impromptu street furniture with a soft recess on it, in the hopes that neighbours might sit as if on a bench and rest for a spell,” Nendo explained.

      A flush-set door can be pushed back to reveal the showroom’s entryway
      Beyond the showroom’s front door lies a small white-painted entryway. Pale marble has been used again here to cover the floor and to form a screen which obscures the staircase leading down to the basement.
      The screen is made up of two overlapping slabs of 10-millimetre-thick marble, each punctuated with holes that measure 65 millimetres wide.
      “The partition’s tempered transparency and lightness reduce the oppressiveness of the marble constitution, softly drawing visitors to the basement exhibition space,” the studio added.

      A perforated marble screen hides the staircase to the basement
      Downstairs, the showroom has been divided into four different rooms. To keep a majority of the floor area free to accommodate different exhibitions, Nendo created three-sided display plinths that sit in the corner of the rooms.
      Each of them is backlit with bright-white strip lights.

      Products are presented on three-sided display plinths
      Some of the plinths dramatically curve inwards to form a half-moon shape. One of these has been used to present sample blocks of different types of marble that Marsotto offers.
      Stool seats in matching finishes are displayed in a row underneath.

      Steel and concrete steps cut through facade of Stairway House by Nendo

      Another room in the basement has been kit-out with one of Marsotto’s dining tables and wall-mounted shelves so that, when necessary, it can be used to host lunch meetings.

      Some of the display plinths curve inwards into a half-moon shape
      This isn’t the first time that Nendo has worked with Marsotto. For the 2016 edition of Milan Design Week, the design studio created an exhibition space for the marble brand that was half white, half black – furniture was arranged to match.
      Four years ago Nendo also came up with the Sway table for Marsotto. Designed to “provide a new expression of agility to marble”, the table looks as if it’s tilting to one side.
      Photography is by Hiroki Tagma.

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      Patagonia granite and wooden logs decorate Off-White's first store in Milan

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      Fashion brand Off-White’s first store in Milan uses natural materials to add warmth to a paired-back store that has white walls broken by Patagonia granite cabinets.Located on Via Verri in Milan, the 400-square-metre Off-White store opened in September and will sell menswear, womenswear and homeware. According to the brand, which is led by fashion designer Virgil Abloh, the boutique “embraces earthy yet elegant minimalism”.

      Top: a wooden log adds an organic feel to the entrance. Above: wall niches are clad in Patagonia granite
      Organic materials were used across the store, with a “fallen” tree log placed near the store’s entrance and granite cabinets used to display products.

      The theme is carried through into the second ground floor room, where wooden plinths were used to create an installation to showcase Off-White accessories and shoes.

      Wooden plinths show Off-White accessories
      Throughout the ground floor womenswear section, travertine flooring is partly covered by rose-coloured rugs featuring the brand’s logo.
      Display cases were kept simple and modernist in polished steel and glass, but the brand chose wall niches clad in Patagonia granite to add interest to the clean walls and underline the organic feel of the space.

      The menswear floor features green hues
      The upstairs floor houses the menswear section, which has a different colour palette to differentiate it from the womenswear section.
      Floor rugs are evergreen instead of rose and a pale green hue is picked up in the wall niches.

      Wooden blocks are used for seating
      Wooden and marble blocks and granite plinths show off the brand’s accessories, while the men’s ready-to-wear is displayed on steel racks.

      Virgil Abloh and AMO design flexible flagship Off-White store in Miami that “can host a runway show”

      The final room in the store, which houses Off-White’s homeware collection, features silk wallpaper and travertine flooring as well as wooden display stands and wall niches.

      The homeware section has simple wood display cases and stands
      Though this is the brand’s first store in the city, Off-White’s design studio is already based in Milan.
      “With a design studio based in Milan, Italy, the label harnesses the history and craftsmanship within the country yet offers a global perspective in terms of design and trends,” said the brand.

      Off-White Milan is on Via Verri
      Off-White also recently unveiled its first Miami store, a flexible flagship that “can host a runway show”.  In addition, Off-White opened the doors to its first stand-alone store in London in September.
      Abloh, who was a judge for the 2019 Dezeen Awards, works on numerous projects outside Off-White and recently teamed up with Mercedes Benz to create a conceptual version of the Mercedes‑Benz G‑Class car.

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      Studio Venturoni warms up Rome apartment with earthy hues

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      Bands of terracotta and sand-coloured paint wrap around the walls of Trevi House, a one-bed apartment in Rome that’s been overhauled by Studio Venturoni.The apartment is situated at the heart of the Italian capital, just a stone’s throw away from the famous Trevi fountain.

      Its interior had previously been dominated by heavy masonry partitions that were splitting up the sizeable 80-square-metre floor plan into several small, cramped rooms.

      Custom wooden cabinets and bookshelves accumulated by the owner were also blocking natural light from coming in.

      Tasked with creating a greater sense of space inside the apartment, Milan-based Studio Venturoni decided to knock through all of the existing partitions.
      This more open floor plan has allowed room for a central dining area. Surrounding walls here feature wide bands of terracotta and sandy-beige paint, two earthy hues which the studio felt were synonymous with Rome.

      Studio Strato creates cosy reading den in renovated Rome apartment

      Studio Venturoni also hoped that the horizontal bands of colour would make the room appear wider.

      Terracotta and orange surfaces appear again in the adjacent living area, which has been dressed with a lengthy grey sofa that slightly rises up on one end like a chaise lounge.
      This piece was specifically selected for its slight resemblance to a triclinium: a type of seat that would appear in the formal dining rooms of affluent Roman homes, composed of three adjoining chaise lounges on which residents would recline while being attended to by servants.

      Other striking furnishings – like Fabio Novembre’s face-shaped Nemo armchair – have been included to match the “monumental feel” of the apartment’s grandiose mahogany doors and wooden ceilings, which the studio decided to preserve during the renovation works.
      “My career has allowed me to understand the importance of detail: everything must be in the right place and we should not be afraid to express bold concepts, even in a domestic setting,” the studio’s founder, Francesca Venturoni explained.

      Burnt-orange tiles have been used to line the floor and the lower half of the walls in the kitchen, which was given a complete re-fit with jet-black cabinetry.
      A curved black counter has also been installed directly beside the kitchen’s window, so that inhabitants can overlook the bustling tourist crowds or listen to the sound of the waters from the Trevi fountain while enjoying breakfast.

      Cooler tones appear in the apartment’s bathrooms, where surfaces have been lined with grey-flecked stone tiles.
      The bedroom also features a blue headboard and curtains, tempered by rich, mustard-coloured dress cushions and brass lighting fixtures.

      Other homes in the historic city of Rome include a cosy apartment by Studio Strato, which has its own reading nook and an industrial-feel flat by architect Alessandro Tomei that boasts exposed concrete surfaces and iron-framed glass partitions.
      Photography is by Michele Bonechi.

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      Deferrari+Modesti designs rock climbing-themed staircase for villa in Tuscany

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      Interior design studio Deferrari+Modesti renovated a house in Prato, Italy, adding a blue staircase that doubles as a climbing wall for its sporty owners. The two-storey house in the Tuscany region, which was built in the 1980s, was in a state of disuse and required a complete refurbishment. Deferrari + Modesti designed an integrated furnishing […] More

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      Holiday home in Tuscany decked out with Italian stone and marble

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      Alberese stones and Carrara marble are some of the Italian materials architects Emanuela Frattini Magnusson and Pietro Todeschini used for the interiors of this Tuscan holiday home. The one-storey house is situated in the small city of Grosseto, set on a hillside that overlooks rolling vineyards and olive groves. It belongs to a US-based couple […] More

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      Casa Mille in Turin is set within the former home of an Italian count

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      Italian architect Fabio Fantolino has created his own apartment inside a palatial 19th-century building in Turin, using pops of green and petrol-blue throughout its interior. The Casa Mille apartment lies behind the doors of a 19th-century palazzo that once belonged to an Italian nobleman called Count Callori. Its living spaces take over a ground-floor extension […] More

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      in Rooms

      Urban Cabin is a micro apartment in Italy with custom seating and storage

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      Architect Francesca Perani has transformed the porch of an Italian villa into a 25-square-metre micro-apartment suitable for self-isolation with plenty of hidden storage. Designed for a local couple, Urban Cabin replaces the porch of a house in Albino, a small town in the Italian province of Bergamo. Perani’s renovation, completed with the help of interior designer […] More