Duplex penthouse apartment in Itaim, São Paulo. The building is from the 1980s and the original plan was full of divisions.

Some radical changes were required: the top floor was separated from the terrace because the stair was badly positioned in the center of the plan. One of the key issues addressed by the client was that the terrace should be connected to the apartment. We relocated the stair to the outer wall, using structural reinforcements after the condominium association’s approval.

The two existing rooms on the top floor were turned into one big room with a home theater, a library and a space to play games connected to the terrace, where there’s a swimming pool and a churrasqueira.¹

The living room on the lower floor was expanded, incorporating the former stair space and part of the kitchen. The walls that separated the living and dining rooms were also demolished. The kitchen can be completely closed or open, connected to the room.

One design highlight is the panel on the living room’s back double-height wall. The offset volumes create, with the new metallic stair, a dynamic background.

¹ Equipment to make churrasco, the Brazilian barbecue.