Washington Project by Barmaymonpiciana Studio
Washington Project reshapes a lived-in apartment in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for a client who never moved out during the work by Barmaymonpiciana Studio. The studio treats the compact home as a single continuous interior, using coordinated materials, custom furniture, and layered lighting to give it clear identity without heavy construction. Each intervention feels precise yet gentle, recasting daily routines against concrete, black cabinetry, and soft illumination.
Morning light filters through full-height curtains and washes across the concrete ceiling before catching on black cabinetry and a low glass table. Shadows slip between the shelving and the upholstered sofa, so the living area reads as one calm, continuous room.
This apartment in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is home to a client who stays put while Barmaymonpiciana Studio reworks every surface in 2025. The project keeps walls largely intact and focuses on a unified interior palette, using custom furniture and precise lighting to give the home a strong, coherent character. A familiar layout stays in place, yet the atmosphere changes completely.
From the entrance, a compact foyer acts as the first cue to this new identity. A dark wall panel, edged with a slim band of light at the ceiling, frames the passage toward the dining table and living area. Handles, switches, and a small shelf sit flush within the black surface, so the eye reads a clean plane rather than scattered objects.
Unifying Living And Dining
Beyond the foyer, living and dining share one elongated room anchored by consistent materials. Warm wood flooring runs the full length, balancing the cool tone of the exposed concrete ceiling overhead. A dark dining table and metal chairs extend the black elements from the cabinetry, while lighter walls keep the composition from feeling heavy. Because finishes repeat from one end to the other, the apartment feels ordered even when daily life leaves books, magazines, and plants in view.
Custom Furniture As Architecture
Along the main wall, a run of custom built-in furniture acts almost as a new interior façade. Low storage in a muted gray color carries the television and audio, above which large concrete panels create a textured backdrop. To one side, tall black shelving carves out open and closed bays for objects, turning everyday items into part of the composition. Across from this, a glass coffee table and neutral rug sit lightly on the floor, allowing the cabinetry to hold visual weight without crowding the room.
Light As Moving Detail
Lighting works in two registers: conventional ceiling fixtures and more experimental integrated sources. A track of spotlights runs toward the balcony, drawing the eye to the daylight beyond the curtains. Inside the built-ins, linear light washes concrete and black panels from hidden edges, emphasizing texture instead of single points of glare. The studio also develops movable diffusers in one area so the resident can adjust brightness and direction, shifting from focused task light to a softer glow with a simple gesture.
A Home As Small Museum
One wall composition turns the apartment into a quiet private gallery. A framed artwork rests against a concrete panel encased by a luminous border, giving depth to the piece without overwhelming it. Below, a black element with vertical slats conceals light and reads almost like a pedestal, so objects sit within a deliberate setting rather than on generic shelving. Another set of illuminated shelves nearby holds vases and books, reinforcing the sense that the home is curated for display yet still ready for everyday use.
By night the apartment glows from within, bands of light tracing the joins between ceiling and wall while pockets of shadow keep the rooms grounded. Daylight, concrete, wood, and black surfaces trade roles through the hours, sometimes bright, sometimes recessive. The result is a compact home with a clear visual rhythm, where a restrained palette and tuned lighting quietly support the rhythms of city living.
Photography courtesy of Barmaymonpiciana Studio
Visit Barmaymonpiciana Studio
