Architecture
An architect’s Milan Palazzo
This Milan space is absolute perfection!
Image courtesy of: Boca De Lobo
Everything old is new again… we’ve all heard that quote; however it rings especially true for the 18th-century apartment that Vincenzo De Cotiis owns. Along with his wife, the architect and designer fabulously transformed a 300-square-meter apartment in a palazzo tucked away on a narrow street in Milan’s Magenta neighborhood.
As with his artifacts, every piece employs a carefully-layered approach that emphasizes the differences between the past and the present. It is exactly this “approach” that has catapulted De Cotiis into one of today’s most sought-after architects and designers.
The furnishings are a wonderful compliment to the renovation’s excavated plaster walls.
Image courtesy of: Boca De Lobo
Milan’s Magenta neighborhood traditionally attracted nobility. The stunning palazzo is gated, and its quiet street feels as though it is a million miles away from the Duomo, Milan’s most visited locale.
De Cotiis made sure that all the renovations were cosmetic rather than structural. He believes that people spend too much time eliminating the original layers that have been added, he spent a lot of time peeling away what had been added by the previous owners. Year of paint, wallpaper, false ceilings, and unattractive carpets were all stripped away. Uncovered during this process was an imperfect yet beautiful interior full of history and character!
De Cotiis designed the sofas, wall light, and side table. The fabulous sculpture is by Florian Baudrexel.
Image courtesy of: Architectural Digest India
De Cotiis says (courtesy of an interview with Jacqueline Terrebonne for Galerie Magazine), “While emphasizing the preexisting, I worked to what my contemporary intervention would be. I enriched some surfaces that contrast each other to create something visually very exciting while at the same time respectful. After stripping back the wall coverings, I choose to leave the walls untreated, so there is a bit of plaster dust if you brush against them. In every room the colors are different. For example, pink frescoes in the library, blue in the bedroom, and ocher in the others. You can still see the gold traces left behind from the 17th-century stuccos. Within that framework, I’ve mixed mostly furniture pieces that were custom-designed by me, along with a few other contemporary examples of collectible design.”
Along with his wife, Claudia, the designer loves the natural light that enters the apartment. He says that it inspires him because when the colors change, the interior appears differently.
Image courtesy of: Anniversary Magazine, photographed by: Paul Lepreux
The colors left behind after the renovation are the result of being bleached by years of sun exposure; in such, the effect is warm. The designer finished off all the rooms with a patinated brass, where all the “private rooms” are hidden and there isn’t a cable or light switch to be seen.
The apartment’s rooms are grand, yet perfectly proportional. The floorplan allows for interconnecting rooms and high ceilings. In order to maintain a continuous flow throughout the entire apartment, the architect removed all the doors. He says (courtesy of an interview with Milan Design Agenda), “I like things to be really open. This place has a lot of intimate corners, so it doesn’t need doors. Also, I love disorder, but a calculated, curated disorder, which at the same time creates a sense of order.”
De Cotiis says that his favorite room is the bedroom.
The bed sits on a resin-topped platform designed by De Cotiis. The cushions are upholstered in 1960’s dress fabrics and the stunning bedspread is by Hermes. De Cotiis also designed artwork behind the bed, the brass light, and the curved screen which is named “DC1515B” and made from received fiberglass and brass.
Image courtesy of: Vogue Living Australia
We can not imagine changing a single item in this house… it is perfection! However, De Cotiis says, “Almost every year I like to change my home. I have new ideas on how to change different rooms to give them a fresh look. But no matter the changes and alterations I make, this place is my island of peace. I’m a very luck man.” We could not agree more!
