Living

[dropcap]P[/dropcap]erched in the low rolling hills beyond the historic village of Barwon Heads on Australia's coast, the striking roofline of a retired couple's daily dwelling unexpectedly peeks above the surrounding Moonah trees and native scrub. Barwon Heads, situated on the Bellarine Peninsula, near Geelong and Melbourne, has become a popular seaside destination for those escaping the city...

A concrete extension built alongside an old granite farmhouse. Located Guarda, Portugal, in an area known as Mora, this contemporary extension adds living spaces to an old granite farmhouse, which now can house only utilitarian programs. Architects Filipe Pina and ...

Versatile, cost-effective, and aesthetic: exploring remarkable living spaces crafted from cinder blocks. Minimalist architecture has been on the rise, and concrete block houses are gaining popularity as a unique and energy efficient building material. Concrete block homes, also known as cinder block homes, offer numerous benefits, such as being fire-resistant and a popular choice in F...

Quiet, compact and bright, this partially sunken retreat and artist's studio is beautifully immersed in a lush natural site. Built on a sloped site in a gorgeous area of El Carmen de Viboral, Colombia, Ocarina House nestles gently into the setting with a partially sunken construction. Oslo and Medellín-based practice LCLA Office, run by architects Luis Callejas and Charlotte Hansson, ...

A Passionate Revival of a Historic Manhattan Apartment Nestled in the vibrant East Village of Manhattan, New York, lies a remarkable apartment with a storied past. Housed within the six-story Onyx Court, built in 1902, this captivating corner spot has welcomed illustrious figures such as opera singers, Oscar-winning composers, and ...

A family home designed with four monolithic volumes arranged around a dining area. Built in Lhotka, Prague, House Lhotka is a great example of contemporary Czech architecture. The family home features four monolithic volumes that complement the surrounding dwellings in this quiet neighborhood, on a street shaded...

A creatively designed house with a central courtyard that houses a tree. Built on the outskirts of the city of Morelia, Mexico, UC House features an ingenious and thoughtful design that establishes a spatial ambiguity between indoor and outdoor spaces. Daniela Bucio Sistos // Taller de Arquitectura y Diseño created the ...

On the picturesque Furillen island on the coast of Gotland, Sweden you can discover an array of quirky structures. Among them, the old limestone factory building or various remnants of the island's past as a military base. This structure has been built in 1961, and though it may not seem likely now, its was used as a military garage. When bought by Lotta and Henrik Imberg, founders of Stockholm...

A refined apartment located in the 1930s extension of a 19th century palazzo. Named Casa Mille, this renovation project spans three eras and different architectural styles. Turin-based Italian architect Fabio Fantolino redesigned the space to create his own home, a refined apartment that celebrates the building’s rich hi...

A harmonious architectural composition that combines a family house and music studio. Built on a hill on the outskirts of the city of Bergen, Norway, Villa Grieg is specially designed as a viewfinder that brings the inhabitants closer to spectacular views of Lake Nordås and its small islands. Saunders Architecture worke...

A wood-clad house built among sand dunes on a beach in New Zealand. Built at the edges of a pine forest, among sand dunes on the east coast of New Zealand’s North Island, this modern rustic house immerses the inhabitants into a picturesque landscape. Te Arai Beach House was designed by Fearon Hay Architects...

An industrial building converted into a writer’s home and studio. Spanish architecture firm Burr completed the Blasón project as part of the larger “Elements for industrial recovery” series that aims to preserve the city’s industrial heritage. With residential buildings ...

An abandoned sewing shop from the 1940s converted into an eco-friendly building with multi-functional spaces. Founded in 1944, furniture brand Emeco produced one of the world’s most iconic chairs. Made specially for U.S. Navy submarines, the Navy Chair was durable and t...

A refurbished and thoughtfully redesigned residential property in Portugal. Located in Cartaxo, Portugal, this residential building required remodeling to become a secluded and comfortable living space. The clients, a couple with connections to the art world, ta...

A beautifully renovated, prewar “Classic Six” apartment in NYC. Located above the Natural History Museum in the Upper West Side, NYC, this prewar apartment had a traditional “Classic Six” floor layout. The clients, a young family with two children, tasked architecture and design firm

A farm building from 1810 transformed into a warm house that celebrates its past. Located in the countryside in South Devon, England, this stone building dates back to 1810. London-based architecture firm TYPE renovated the abandoned and partly destroyed structure before transforming it into Redhill Barn, a

A minimalist dwelling that effortlessly fuses contemporary design, nature, sustainability and local heritage. Surrounded by dry stone walls, fruit trees and an olive tree grove in the Puglian countryside, Italy, this contemporary house brings the tranquility of the rustic...

A quiet retreat designed to minimize its presence in a natural landscape. Built on a sloping terrain on the shores of Ranco Lake, south Chile, this lake house has a thoughtful design that preserves and celebrates the beauty of the landscape. Benjamin Litvak of blaq a...

A brutalist-style, rentable villa that opens to breathtaking sea views through floor-to-ceiling glazing. Located on Yagaji Island, northern Okinawa, Japan, Villa M allows guests to experience the spectacular coastal landscape as they unwind and spend quality time with family and friends, away from the busy pace of urban ...

A single-family house built into a hillside that overlooks a coastal landscape. Built on a hillside in Astigarraga, in the Basque Country, northern Spain, Santiagomendi House opens to spectacular views of the surrounding rolling hills, the coastal landscape and the Cantabrian Sea in the distance. San Sebastián-based arch...

A contemporary design inspired by traditional stone farmhouses. Located in the Eastern Townships, in Quebec, Canada, this lakeside house is contemporary but also takes inspiration from vernacular architecture. More specifically, from traditional stone dwellings. Toronto-based Lee and Macgillivray Architecture Studio (LAMAS) de...

A concrete weekend home built under an avocado field. [dropcap]M[/dropcap]any houses nestled in natural landscapes aim to minimize their visual impact on pristine sites, but Mexico City-based architect Francisco Pardo took a more radical approach for th...

An intimate restaurant opened within the walls of an old carpentry workshop. Located in the town of Barr, France, an old building that used to house a carpentry workshop was transformed into a small restaurant. Strasbourg-based architecture studio nara completed this adaptive-reuse project with great respect for th...

The home of an iconic Danish designer and architect, revisited by a heritage furniture brand. Here at Gessato we love Scandinavian design as much as we admire Danish furniture, architecture, and the kind of timeless objects that become...

Contemporary design alongside architectural elements from the ‘60s. Tasked with renovating an old apartment in Vigo, Spain, the Ansede Quintáns Arquitectos studio focused on uncovering the interior’s past while also adding a contemporary layer to the space. Left in ruins, the apartment feature...

An old house transformed into a bright, spacious dwelling inspired by the wabi-sabi aesthetic. The Loft-Kolasiński studio has recently completed a renovation project that has transformed a house built in 1923 into an airy contemporary home. Named House from 1923 (Pogodno 6), the dwelling is located in Szczecin, Poland. Th...

Sustainable furniture inspired by the beauty of solid birch wood. Montreal-based, award-winning firm APPAREIL Architecture has opened a new studio, APPAREIL Atelier. The multidisciplinary practice brings together architects and industrial des...

The thoughtful redesign, conversion and extension of a heritage-listed hut located in a charming village in the Bavarian Alps. Alpine architecture at its best, this project completed by Max von Werz Arquitectos breathes new life into a traditional stone building while expanding it with thoughtfully designed, contemporary v...

A traditional brick house, redesigned with tranquil and minimalist interiors. Named Aristo House, this stone building that dates back to 1914 is located in a charming setting, on the slope of the Trigno Valley, Italy. The site, beautiful on its own, also offers access to gorgeous views of rolling hills, forests, and the ...

A playful, stylish, and vibrant apartment designed with eclectic interiors. Located in a historical building in the Gastown neighborhood of Vancouver, Canada, the Koret Loft tells a fascinating story about the evolution of architecture and design. Originally built in 1909 by Edward Evans Blackmore, the former industrial

Two volumes, terraces, and a garden on a site with striking ocean views. Designed by Brooklyn, New York and Richmond, Virginia-based Architecturefirm, Hither Hill Residence is a special architectural project that incorporates both the site’s rich history of farming and its cultural landscape in its design. Located in Mo...

A sophisticated and minimalist home that celebrates a desert landscape. Located on a rocky plateau in the Palm Desert, California, this desert home immerses its inhabitants into a gorgeous arid landscape with views of the Coachella Valley and the San Jacinto Mountain Range in the distance. San Francisco-based...

A traditional Victorian terraced house, gorgeously transformed with a series of interconnected spaces bathed in light. Located in Clapton, East London, United Kingdom, this residence was a typical Victorian terraced house. While featuring a charming brick exterior,...

A black cabin designed to disappear into a lakeside woodland in British Columbia. Located at the highest point on a slope that overlooks a lake on in West Kootenay, British Columbia, Canada, this cabin provides access to striking views of the surrounding forest, water, and mountain peaks in the distance. Architecture and interior desig...

Monolithic and contemporary, but perfectly integrated into a picturesque setting. Located in meadow on a 280-acre family farm, Pennsylvania Farmhouse stands out in the beautiful landscape. Cutler Anderson Architects designed the four-bedroom white modern farmhouse with strong links to the...

A refined apartment designed with flowing spaces and playful details. Located on Park Avenue on the Upper East Side in Manhattan, NYC, this sprawling 4,000-square-foot apartment was transformed completely by architecture firm Michael K. Chen Architecture (MKCA) who designed a refined but playful home for a family of five. ...

Inspired by vernacular architecture, this contemporary retreat blends into the Australian bushland. [dropcap]I[/dropcap]n 2010, Australian architect Roger Nelson and his wife, Jane, purchased a plot of land in Lorne, Victoria. Located a couple of hours away from Melbourne, the property provided the perfect space to bu...

An elegant turntable created for vinyl lovers who also love minimalist design. Winner of the recognition prize at the Austrian Design Prize 2019, the Tone Factory turntable has an ingenious design. It integrates the main components inside a circular base that also acts as a support for the chassis. As a result, the minimalist turntable has an elegantly simple design with clean lines a...

A design that celebrates the passing of time and the beauty of light. Designed by Melbourne-based studio Edition Office for an older couple, Kyneton House is a cozy home that has a special relationship to the passing of time as seen through the changing of seasons in a garden. The design is contemporary and distinctive, combining wa...

A restored and thoughtfully modernized 19th century house in Spain. Located in the center of the charming town of Comillas, Spain, this 19th century listed baronial house required major repairs and renovation work to become a welcoming family home. Madrid...

A contemporary brick house that celebrates Norwegian masonry traditions. Inspired by the masonry building traditions and techniques typical of the area around the lake of Mjøsa, Sanden+Hodnekvam Architects designed this single family house with exposed brick cladding. The house is located in Lillehammer, a town and ...

A heritage brick cottage transformed into a modern home that celebrates the character of the original design. Originally a part of a 1920s estate in Sydney, Australia, this heritage brick cottage was transformed over the years with questionable alterations, incl...

A house partly built within a slope that overlooks a bay and mountains. Built on a sloping site on a bend of the Derwent River in Hobart, Australia, House at Otago Bay immerses its residents in a beautiful natural landscape. Architecture firm Topology Studio nestled the building into its setting by partly embedding t...

Three heritage terraced houses transformed into a refined home filled with light. Located in Woollahra, a suburb of the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, Australia, this property features heritage facades with classic metal balconies. Renato D’Ettorre Architects transformed three adjacent workers cottages into one large res...

This architect’s Catskill house-studio re-imagines vernacular architecture. Located in Claryville, the Catskill Mountains - only a couple of hours away from New York City - Camp O is a residential property and studio nestled in the natural landscape. Architect Maria Milans del Bosch designed the dwelling for herself as a live...

A restored and thoughtfully modernized apartment in a heritage building in Montréal. Located in “Unity”, a hundred-year old heritage building in the Old Port of Montréal, Canada, this apartment pays homage to its industrial past while embracing the urban context. Local architecture firm Future Simple Studio rest...

Introducing the Mossy Point House, a brilliantly designed haven that masterfully creates a beautiful connection between its interiors and the stunning surrounding landscape, all on a modest budget. Enthusiastically inspired by the towering Spotted Gum trees in a quiet area of Mossy Point, Australia, the home's sleek cement-she...

A black concrete and wood volume perched atop of a hill with views of a verdant landscape. Perched atop of a hill in the Byron Bay hinterland, Australia, Federal House strikes an arresting figure with its distinctive design. Melbourne-based architect...

A mid-19th century townhouse, renovated and redesigned with bright, multi-functional spaces. The townhouse, originally built in the mid-19th century as part of a terrace development in north London, underwent a major renovation project completed by London-based architecture firm Unagru to transform it into a contemporar...

A striking holiday house designed with bold geometric forms inspired by naturally formed rock formations. Located in the village of Finikia in Santorini, Greece, Monolithus is a creatively designed holiday house that strikes a bold silhouette in the coastal landscape. Architecture firm Kapsimalis Architects designed the...

A home designed with a transparent screened porch that connects two wings. Architecture and interior design firm Berman Horn Studio took inspiration from both traditional farmhouses in the Maine area and minimalist Shaker design to create the...

A concrete and glass house that opens to fantastic views of Sydney Harbor. Bordered by a large apartment building to the north and an even taller building at the rear, House Taurus still strikes an impressive figure with its brutalist-style aesthetic, curved walls, and

A family house designed with three linked timber volumes. [dropcap]L[/dropcap]ocated in a beautiful landscape on Shelter Island, New York, this single-story family house has a creative design that makes the most of the site’s best features. New York-based architecture and design firm Christoff:Finio Architecture

An old farm and tobacco barn, transformed into a modern-rustic residence. Located in Aillas, France, this property comprised two old buildings: a traditional farm and a timber barn used in the past to dry tobacco. Architecture practice Atelier Boteko renovated and redesig...

A pre-1911 cottage transformed with contemporary volumes that shelter a large garden. Completed by architecture and interior design practice Myers Ellyett, this project involved the refurbishment of a pre-1911 cottage in Paddington, Australia and the design of new, ...

The re-launch of an iconic 1960s chair. Founded in 2016, Norwegian furniture brand Eikund has a simple but admirable mission: to bring 1950s and 1960s Nordic modernist designs back to life. The company’s collection includes re-launched classics that introduce a new generation of design lovers to iconic Norwegian furniture. As...

Utilitarianism, the beauty of imperfection, and the exploration of simple, organic forms created from tactile materials. Australian designer Henry Wilson is one of the most inspiring creatives of his generation, with his work defined by utilitarianism as well as individuality. After studying at the Australian National Univer...

Two homes designed as neighboring volumes connected by a central patio that opens towards a ravine. Named Casa Estudio, this property completed by Manuel Cervantes Estudio is actually made up of two structures that have a direct relationship with each other and with the surrounding landscape. Built in Mexico City, o...

A house transformed with re-inhabited voids and a closer connection to nature. Located at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac in Atherton San Mateo County, California, this house is surrounded by mature oaks and grass. The design, although beautiful and representative of an era before the city underwent rapid growth, requ...

A cutting-edge music system made for both audio and design lovers. A family-owned company established in 1985 by a father and son team, Ruark Audio has transformed over the years into a well-known brand that values audio quality as much as it celebrates good design. The new R5 High Fidelity mu...

Whether you live in a compact apartment or love multifunctional furniture, a sofa bed futon, a futon bed, or a day bed should be at the top of your furniture buying list. That’s because these practical pieces of furniture can easily transform any room into a guest bedroom or a cozy lounge space. Usually in seconds, without the ne...

A 1970s house transformed into a warm and contemporary living space where redwood surfaces meet splashes of color and artworks. Located in the picturesque Noe Valley in San Francisco, this house dates back to 1974, when architect Albert Lanier designed it with angular forms, redwood-clad interiors and

A contemporary renovation that connects the home to its garden, transforming a once dark and cramped Victorian terrace into a light-filled oasis. London-based architectural studio Neiheiser Argyros has breathed new life into a Victorian terrace, Steele's Road House, by incorporating open spaces, balconies, and innovati...

A 19th century brick house, redesigned with warm, minimalist interiors and a sculptural staircase. Boston-based architecture firm Studio J. Jih and San Francisco-based studio Figure have collaborated to complete the renovation of a four-story rowhouse in Boston’s South End. Dating back to the 19th century, the historic building has brick walls and a width of 15 feet. The client commis...

The greener version of a popular Muuto design. Introduced in 2014, the Fiber Chair designed by Iskos-Berlin provided a fresh, forward-thinking take on the classic shell chair design. It featured an innovative blend of materials, plastic and wood fiber, that provided both durability and strength. For 2022, Danish