Refurbishment of a small apartment in the heart of Milan. This project started with the intention of including all our core values of comfort, space flexibility, light stream and thoughtful design, into a very small surface. 

The challenge was also represented by the natural light coming only from one side and by the client request of adding a guest room. A clear open layout allowed us to overcome these preconditions. We divided the space into the bedroom area and the living area where two partitions floor to ceiling define the area. One incorporates the kitchen and the related storage, the other squares the space allowing depth for a folding bed and a wardrobe. Both made of dark wood, these partitions run over two sides of the perimeter, allowing an open, fluid space. The third side is made of white bespoke regular panels, some of which include the well hidden doors to bedroom and bathroom. The latter is conceived as a shelter dug up of a full block of travertine.

But the real protagonist of the project is the big island placed perpendicular to the kitchen partition: a solid block of black marquina marble cut through by a long travertino platform, to challenge gravity. The intersection of volume and surface, solid and empty, black and cream, heaviness and lightness make this element a living sculpture and the centerpiece of our creative practice. The strength of the black marble block, the grainy texture of the wood, the long veins of the travertine embrace the whole space with no interruption. One is taken into an immersive experience from the moment of entering, to the passing through, till the use of the space.