A single-cell organism, divided into two volumes structurally identical and internally similar yet opposite. This is the project for the restructuring and designing interiors of the twin lofts, in the post-industrial Milan of 2007. The work turned in fact on a former factory in the southern part of Milan, once an industrial outer suburb and today a residential district.
Twin lofts, with the same design as the internal spaces, were created by dividing a single one long sleeve-shaped space lengthwise. The ground floors of the two lofts, each comprised of mirrored halls, open kitchens, and the apertures onto the small private gardens, a long table with high seating, a bathroom, and the staircase that goes up to the floors above. In the first one, in fact, the staircase is the peculiar element, thanks to its volumes (which incorporate the bathroom), the raw material (pickled iron) with bare welds and the risers of the stairs left hollow, so that as one goes up, the point of view changes and the staircase is lightened and acquires the consistency of origami.
Colors and finishes used for various surfaces are quite minimal; all white for the satin-finish lacquered wood of the cabinets and work surfaces in Corian. Symmetries and variations are also interlaced on the upper floors.
On the first level, a portion of glass flooring provides a glimpse of the kitchens below. On the second floor, the strictly orthogonal interiors are interrupted by introducing a circular bed and replacing the doors of the walk-in wardrobe with a whole wall made of soft white draperies. The top level of the attic is an all-white space designed as a guest room.
photo credits: Matteo Piazza