A metropolitan loft

The task of recreating the minimal yet sophisticated atmosphere of a metropolitan loft in an anonymous fifties city apartment was the essence of a design brief drawn up for a recent renovation project in Bologna. This radical project required a high degree of teamwork, making it ideal for Officina Architettura, the practice headed by architect Andrea Bernagozzi which comprises a number of different professional figures including an architect, an interior decorator and a light designer. It was precisely this collaboration between architecture and interior design professionals that gave rise to the idea of an open space capable of communicating seamlessly with all the rooms in the home, creating a comfortable and multifunctional place for living and working, keeping fit and relaxing. The result is a house that reflects the personalities and passions of the owners, a mixture of the art of living and a taste for contemporary environments. The spaces flow seamlessly from one to another. The entrance door faces straight onto the living room, an open-plan space that communicates with the other rooms without visual or physical barriers. «In response to the client’s needs, the first step was to eliminate the visual barriers and architectural divisions while creating a harmony of forms, colours and materials,» explained interior designer Augusta Toni. The furnishings played a key role in achieving this result, with each element made to measure. A big contribution was made by the use of large-format Kerlite panels from Cotto d’Este (300 x100 cm), which have the capacity to create well-defined, highly modern spaces. These visually striking products make for a high degree of living comfort and can even be applied to furniture and shelves as a single spatial element. From its original use as a floor and wall covering, porcelain laminate has been transformed into a key furnishing element, the ideal material for a kitchen countertop or a comfortable bathroom seat. It is used to cover shelves, benches, the entire spa zone in the bathroom, and even furniture such as an office desk, cabinets and sliding doors. It is also used on worktops throughout the kitchen, all with continuity of colour and material. Another important aspect of porcelain’s versatility derives from its very low thickness, which as in this case enables it to be installed directly over the old floor. In marked contrast, the vertical surfaces such as the recessed wall in the living room feature a material with a strong personality, a plaster applied in a pattern reminiscent of trowelled tile adhesive, whereas in other zones the designers opted for a marble or Venetian stuccowork type finish. The end result is highly consistent and stands out for its clean, essential lines pervading the spaces, enhanced by the chosen materials.