In 2024, Maria Adele Savioli Architettura revitalised an apartment in a historic 19th-century building in Rome, Italy. Casa Buonarroti‘s design highlights its generous heights and expansive windows, blending tradition with a functional contemporary vision. With bespoke elements like a wide iron portal and oak staircase, the project redefines the flat’s layout while preserving its historic essence, offering a refined interpretation of renovation.
The Three-Courtyard House by Habanero Architecture in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, showcases a Vastu Shastra-inspired design, blending contemporary aesthetics with traditional harmony. The house’s leveled plane creates three courtyards, enclosed by a U-shaped retaining concrete wall. This structure not only aligns with nature but ensures energy efficiency with concrete masonry units and stucco, adding insulation internally.
Interior designer Omar Abdelkhalek renovated the Flexibility of Spaces apartment in Cairo, Egypt to create an adaptable living area. Designed in 2023, the home mixes modern elements with classic features such as folding doors.
The open-plan space is easy to reconfigure, featuring a central living area that connects to a bedroom, kitchen, dining, and reception through sliding doors. A wooden storage spine adds flexibility and functionality, serving as both a practical element and a visual focus.
The Classic MUJI Home in Taichung, Taiwan, exemplifies minimalist design through a soft, light-hued, restrained personality. Designed by Angel Chen, it highlights the beloved MUJI aesthetics. The apartment features white walls, light wood flooring, an open layout, and efficient storage solutions. Natural light enhances the space, with every aspect from textiles to decor carefully considered to promote spatial harmony. The apartment is a testament to the owners’ understanding of their needs, embodying understated elegance and clever organization.
Angel Chen designed the Harmonious Love Haven, a 14-ping apartment in Taichung, Taiwan, for a couple embodying quiet elegance. Completed in 2022, the residence reflects their balanced relationship through minimalist Japanese aesthetics and sustainable features. The home doubles as a meeting space, providing a serene environment that respects the couple’s independence while nurturing their connection. Reconfigured layouts reduce confinement, earning a GD Gold Green Renovation certification with low-formaldehyde materials and adhesive-free finishes.
E House, designed by Setenay Erkul Architects in 2025, is a family home situated on the Asian side of Istanbul, Turkey. This three-story house, adjacent to a forest, showcases a sculptural and elegant design. The use of natural materials like wood and marble, along with various artworks, creates a sophisticated and inviting atmosphere, balancing sophistication with warmth.
Architectural studio Ayami Takada Architects overhauled a relatively new house in Shizuoka, Japan, by incorporating three translucent spaces and a sunroom equipped with solar panels. The team aimed to create a completely different environment through expansion and renovation, rather than rebuilding, by “taking advantage of the topography of the river breakwater bank and the privilege of having a panoramic view of the landscape beyond.”
Designed in 2023, the 143-square-metre home is characterized by a transparent box forming a junction between interior and exterior spaces.
In 2024, Sara Gelibter Architecte reimagined Felsenburg, a historic house in Biel-Bienne, Switzerland, originally constructed around 1860. An urgent roof renovation served as the catalyst, leading to a design featuring corrugated fiber cement panels and exposed wooden structures.
The project prioritizes economic and ecological considerations, showcasing a collaborative effort between architects and owners, resulting in a space that honors its historical heritage while embracing contemporary design elements.
