K House by Studio Arthur Casas
Located in São Paulo, Brazil, this modern two-storey house was designed in 2012 by Studio Arthur Casas.
Description by Studio Arthur Casas
This house is a project for a young couple from São Paulo. They challenged the Studio to overhaul an existing incomplete structure. We aimed to finish the house by bringing comfort and privacy within a dense urban context, next to close neighboring houses.
The division of the space is simple: garage and TV room in the basement; kitchen, dining, living room and terrace on the ground floor and bedrooms on the first floor. Though the structure had to be partially adapted, most of the openings were kept unchanged.
The Studio stimulated the ideas to ‘dress’ the house, which led to creating golden metal panels with perforations based upon a 19th century leaf engraving. This solution was sought to render the volume homogeneous, thus the proximity with the neighbors was attenuated and internal spaces were enriched by the moving light dots according to the sun position.
If, on one hand, panels filter the sunlight and also indiscrete regards, on the other, we created an underground courtyard to bring natural light to the basement and a slit above the stairs to illuminate the vertical garden. The master bedroom has a generous window towards the backyard, where the landscape design created a small oasis within the city. A water basin intensifies the sensation of amplitude within the garden.
Folding doors allow different configurations between the dining room, the pantry and the corridor, bringing flexibility to the usage of the house. In the living room, glass doors slide within the walls, allowing complete integration with the courtyard.
This house is a project for a young couple from São Paulo. They challenged the Studio to overhaul an existing incomplete structure. We aimed to finish the house by bringing comfort and privacy within a dense urban context, next to close neighboring houses.
The division of the space is simple: garage and TV room in the basement; kitchen, dining, living room and terrace on the ground floor and bedrooms on the first floor. Though the structure had to be partially adapted, most of the openings were kept unchanged.
The Studio stimulated the ideas to ‘dress’ the house, which led to creating golden metal panels with perforations based upon a 19th century leaf engraving. This solution was sought to render the volume homogeneous, thus the proximity with the neighbors was attenuated and internal spaces were enriched by the moving light dots according to the sun position.
If, on one hand, panels filter the sunlight and also indiscrete regards, on the other, we created an underground courtyard to bring natural light to the basement and a slit above the stairs to illuminate the vertical garden. The master bedroom has a generous window towards the backyard, where the landscape design created a small oasis within the city. A water basin intensifies the sensation of amplitude within the garden.
Folding doors allow different configurations between the dining room, the pantry and the corridor, bringing flexibility to the usage of the house. In the living room, glass doors slide within the walls, allowing complete integration with the courtyard.
The Studio was also responsible for the interior design project and adapted some vintage 1950s furniture inherited by the couple. Their fashion related profession led to some unexpected choices, such as velvet coating in turquoise and pink tones.
Casa K has a discrete urban insertion, presenting itself as a mysterious monolith to the street and surprising visitors with rich and varied spaces. It established interesting relations between private and social areas, always bearing in mind the serenity aimed by the clients.
Photography by FG+SG
- by Matt Watts
