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  • 13 hours ago
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In an inventive redesign of her 19th century Italian apartment into a multifunctional home and office, Architect Catarina Pilar Palumbo transformed the formerly gloomy space into a bright and colourful home. With the addition of a blue steel loft, she was able to elevate the bedroom and divide the apartment into living and working spaces, exposing the relocated kitchen to more light. This concept continues into the bathroom where a distinctive faux LED skylight washes the room in a soft glow that extends outwards into the rest of the apartment, accompanied by the bold color of the home's blue features.

Project Name: Il Cubotto
Architect: https://thecaterpilar.it/

Produced by New Mac Video Agency
Creator: Colin Chee
Camera: Alessandro Carpentiero
Producer: Lindsay Barnard
Editor: Lucy Cawood
Music: How Could the World Contain You by The Soundkeeper
Transcript
00:03The apartment is located in a downtown neighborhood where tradition and innovation meets.
00:14The building is a residential building constructed in the late 19th century and completely refurbished in the 90s.
00:32My name is Caterina Pilar Palumbo and I'm an architect.
00:37I live and work in the apartment.
00:41I wanted a multifunctional space that is both a place to live and an architect's office.
00:49When I first saw the apartment, the first room was a living area and a kitchen.
00:56There was a door to a narrow and gloomy corridor.
01:01Off this corridor there were three more doors.
01:05I also wanted to increase the light coming into the apartment.
01:10So I removed all the unnecessary doors and small walls and converted the storage room into a kitchen.
01:19I added the blue mezzanine and I created the subdivision between private and public areas.
01:33Since that the space is multifunctional, it's important to create fluidity between the different areas.
01:44Entering the apartment you see the dining room meeting room with a round table and transparent folding chairs around it.
01:55There are a lot of display shelves on the walls full of materials and samples.
02:04Looking up you see the bookcase and the sliding blue step ladder that is used to read the books in
02:11my library and also to access the mezzanine.
02:15The kitchen is small and minimal, but it's carefully designed.
02:22There are two cupboards with flap doors, a small fridge, some drawers and a range hood.
02:31The bench top is deeper than usual because there are three hidden storage boxes at the rear.
02:41The bathroom hasn't been relocated and its fundamental layout is unchanged.
02:48A sliding plexiglass stain conceals the storage area and also functions as a shower screen.
02:57The ceiling is fully illuminated and everyone who comes in for the first time asks if there is a skylight.
03:05It's actually a custom-made plexiglass panel with concealed LED illumination.
03:13There is the office and the living area with two cantilevered wooden desks where I work and a blue sofa
03:22for both working and relaxing.
03:25The sofa is a Japanese futon so it can also become a bed for guests.
03:32I've designed a lot of cupboards on wheels that are used around the apartment for different functions.
03:39The one next to the sofa hides a projector, for example.
03:48The mezzanine intersects the two cubes, maximizing the space and dividing the private area above from the public area below.
04:00The handrail structure is designed as a frame to let the light come in.
04:06If you look out you see the bookcase and the geometry of the 12 lights on the ceiling.
04:15Close to the wall there are four white panels that slide open to reveal the storage, the heater and the
04:23sleeping area.
04:26On the right there is a wardrobe and on the left a bed with a side table.
04:33A lamp is hung on the blue structure.
04:38To enlarge the space and give fluidity I choose to restrict the palette of materials.
04:46Tarazza floor, blue steel for the mezzanine, half white tiles with small blue dots and white panels for storage.
05:00Bergamo is full of old buildings that we need to maintain and use.
05:05I like the possibility that comes from using new materials in antiquated spaces.
05:12Giving them new life is the most sustainable way to design.
05:16The next step is to ensure the space of the 4-9 excellence.
05:18The next step is to ensure that the screen is fully built and the open space.
05:21The next step is to ensure a space of the design.
05:21To ensure the space of the space.
05:28You
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