Simone Mantovani's Award-Winning Residence Design: A Study in Modern Minimalism

Exploring the Uniqueness of Mantovani's Spatial Integration and Open Spaces in Residential Architecture

Simone Mantovani's design was inspired by the modern lifestyle, with an emphasis on family interaction and full space usage. The house was conceived to favor the union between interior and exterior, with a meticulous definition of finishing materials to explore the contrast between dark and light. The combination of concrete and metallic structure resulted in daring open spaces and aesthetic uniformity.

The uniqueness of the design lies in its development around a large internal garden and a ray swimming pool. These elements are integrated with the house blocks through glass slippery panels, providing interior light and a seamless union between interior and exterior. The design features few walls, larger open spaces, and a lot of transparency, with straight lines and texture variation as the main design directives.

The realization of the design involved a meticulous study of finishing materials, including plain white walls, natural Brazilian stones like Black Slate and Travertin marble, ebony wood, and contrasting internal light floor wood and external Itauba floor wood. The absence of doorspots at pivot doors and glass walls promotes wide ambiences, emphasizing the open house design. The Living Room space works as a big covered terrace, with a gas fireplace embedded in a longitudinal niche, all coated in steel plates.

Located in a residential neighborhood in Sao Paulo City, Brazil, the one thousand square meter house project was developed creating distinct blocks, according to their functions as living, services, and bedrooms, accommodated in three different levels. The philosophy of the essential applied to architecture brought greater value to the spaces. The integrated ambients promoted intense interaction and coexistence between individuals, which were the keys to the success of this project.

The conception of this project took six months and its construction around two years. It was exhibited in Bienal Internacional de Arquitetura e Design Sao Paulo, Brazil. A research and technical adjustments were made for the construction of the gas fireplace, designed with three meters in length. The result was a simple, practical, and efficient system that provides regular and sufficient heat to the two hundred square meter environment, completely safe and with minimum gas discharge.

One of the challenges was to apply the City Hall laws to this narrow site and get a good design. Also, as being a city house in Sao Paulo, security was prioritized, developing the project to the inside with no openings to the street and implanting and designing special security systems. Despite these challenges, Mantovani's design stands as a testament to the possibilities of modern, minimalist architecture, showcasing how design can enhance lifestyle and interaction within a family.