set architects

The 65-square-metre apartment is situated within Lot IV of the Porta Angelica complex, designed in 1938 by Ugo Luccichenti, Mario Tufaroli, and Gianfranco Bianchi.

The clients, a young couple, requested a flexible, light, and dynamic living space within a limited area and budget.

Originally, the apartment featured a traditional layout with a corridor and separate rooms, which restricted the flow and natural light from the five large, regularly spaced windows on the building’s façade.

The design strategy involved minimal demolition, removing walls between the two central rooms to eliminate the corridor and create an open-plan dining and living area with a kitchen. Additionally, two full-height openings were made in the wall of the last room, transforming it into a service area housing the refrigerator, washing machine, and built-in wardrobe. The removal of doors renders this core independent and prominent, allowing the space to remain open and fluid. A load-bearing partition forms the central nucleus of the design, left exposed and finished in concrete to highlight its presence.

The scheme is defined by neutral tones and a tactile materiality, creating contrasts between surfaces. The continuous floor is a light grey concrete, walls are smooth and painted white, while the ceiling features a textured, rough cement-based plaster finish, also painted white.

Custom-designed metal furnishings complete the material palette, conceived as slender, essential elements that both define the space and help contain costs.

The stainless steel kitchen is designed as a monolithic, refined object that serves as the focal point of the living area.

This project forms part of the practice’s ongoing research into minimal domestic spaces and the potential for radical transformation within limited budgets.