St-Gérard residence

M51A fertile dialogue between designers and clients – a family from Turin – for a residence in an elegant building from the 1930s in the Porta Susa zone. The extraordinary potential of the spaces has been shaped by the desires of its inhabitants, little by little. The apartment was made by recovering and expanding the attic level, and it is organized around a large panoramic terrace. The heights, amplified by a new lamellar wood roof clad with coated sheet metal planks, rely on a sequence of over 20 dormers at the sides. In alignment with the original openings of the building, they have the task of producing visual continuity while bringing in more light. The designers’ approach is sartorial, also recovering added volume generated by the extension of the stairwell, to give rise to a turret that functions as a master bedroom. It is connected to the main level by a sculptural staircase in which each step is different from the others. The separation between the night zone and the living area is obtained by means of orientation. The layout is seamless, along the axis of the spine of the building, moving through the kitchen, dining area, living room and terrace. Convivial spaces governed by the modular arrangement of mobile and transparent partitions, enhanced by wallpaper in tones of sky blue and a custom accessorized wall in pale blue. The private area is specular, including two rooms for the children, one for guests, a playroom, a small semi-independent flat for the household staff, and services. Here too the attention to detail is extreme, balancing cool and warm colors.

Location: Turin, Italy

Architecture: Icona Architetti Associati

Furnishings and fittings: Bontempi, Flou, Ditre, Rimadesio, Bolzan, Gervasoni, Pratic, Steel, Jim Thompson Fabrics, Thibaut, Ceramica Cielo, Fantini Group, Italgraniti, Marazzi

Custom furnishings: Dekton, Fogliati Marmi, Colombo Arredi, Falegnameria Builia, Italgraniti Group, VMZinc

Floors: Parital, Déco Lightings: Black out, Penta Light, Il Fanale, Flos, Rotaliana, Ego Luce, DCW, Nemo

Photos: Monica Spezia

In the dense residential urban fabric of the Villeray district, which does not permit major variations in the layout, the single-family home on multiple levels is the result of a project of almost total reconstruction that explores the vertical aspect of volumes and everyday life, weaving completely new relationships and perspectives between the various spaces. The backbone of the structure is the stairwell, which rises from the basement to the fourth and last level, creating unity while dividing the functional zones. Made in wood, it has glass surfaces to allow natural light to pass, and to permit views between the various levels. To revolutionize the classic organization of the floors and to recover space, vertical thrust and volume, the architects have demolished the back façade, conserving the main front and inserting a series of staggered half stories. The layout of the domestic settings has been organized in response to the levels of privacy desired by the members of the family. From the basement for the children to the first floor which contains the entrance, the studio and the living area; from the level hosting the more dynamic spaces of the kitchen and the dining zone, to the two upper floors that offer very large bedrooms, with a master suite in the uppermost and clearly private part of the residence.

Location: Montréal

Design: Issadesign

Wood floor: Craft

Ceramics: Ramacieri Soligo

Millwork: Dcorp concept

Photos: Philippe Bernard