São Paulo, Brazil
The following description is courtesy of Studio Arthur Casas.
Located near the office towers of Faria Lima, this 16-storey building has a wide variety of typologies, with 88 units between 25 and 100 square meters. Unprecedented exercise for Studio Arthur Casas, the reduced size of the modules should incorporate values applied to office projects, such as fluidity between spaces and integration with the exterior.
The client wanted a building that would break with the paradigms of the city’s real estate market, accustomed to simplistic solutions of mere application of restrictive laws, when more in small units. The innovative plant was designed from a module of 1.25m x 1.25m, with the rationalization of vertical circulations and shafts. Three typologies were created, then mirrored and distributed according to the plan’s possibilities in the deep and narrow terrain. The result is similar to a combinatorial analysis game of the six modules in five distinct floors, creating great dynamism in the facade.
Photo by Fernando Guerra Photo by Fernando Guerra 
Photo by Fernando Guerra
The monotony of small spaces gave way to the work of adapting the legislation, with generous openings and creative layout solutions, privileging the feeling of fluidity and the contact with the outside. Integrated cabinets and spaces developed diagonally extend the limits of the apartments. As important as the units, support areas extend the use of the inhabitants to the common spaces, with design worked from the bicyclist to the coworking rooms.
Photo by Fernando Guerra 
Photo by Fernando Guerra Photo by Fernando Guerra 
Photo by Fernando Guerra 
Photo by Fernando Guerra 
Photo by Fernando Guerra
The facade in white ACM plates, of varied modulations, emphasizes the apparent randomness of the openings. It is impossible to distinguish the size of the units, transforming the building into a dynamic set of indiscernible modules. The lead base contrasts with the light volume of the building, surrounded by the landscaping of Alex Hanazaki. The result is an architecture that questions the monotony of the context in which it is inserted, integrating values of urban diversity from the few square meters of each unit.
Photo by Fernando Guerra 
Photo by Fernando Guerra
Project Information
Project: VN Ferreira Lobo Building
Author: Arthur Casas
Team: Ana Beatriz Braga, Gabriel Ranieri, Pedro Ribeiro e Regiane Khristian
Contractor: Vitacon
Consultants: Eduardo Penteado (estrutura); PHE Projetos (elétrica e hidráulica); Alex Hanazaki (paisagismo); Contractors (arcondicionado); Carvalho e Silveira (gerenciamento)
Dates: 2012 – 2018
Plot area: 1 059,06 m2
Built area: 6 825,45 m2
Location: São Paulo, SP – Brazil
Photos: Fernando Guerra
