Upon entering Casa Niwa , the third space on the CASACOR São Paulo 2017 circuit, visitors were met with a spontaneous feeling of coziness and well-being. The affectionate decoration and the coexistence with nature marked the space designed by the Yamagata Arquitetura office, formed by architect Paloma Yamagata, interior designer Bruno Rangel and style consultant Aldi Flosi.

With oriental and minimalist touches, the space brought together strong materials, such as concrete and dark wood, while also investing in integration with the garden, created in partnership with landscaper Alex Hanazaki.

Memory was one of the main starting points for the design of the project. Along with it, came the concern to reflect the history and identity of the resident in the objects and furniture that permeated the environment. “An integrated, humanized house, with life... a real home”, this is how Aldi defines the space and adds: “it wasn’t functional, but it could be. It had the proportions and layout that would work in any setting”.

Running through the entire living room, the bookcase designed by Bruno Rangel managed to translate all the aspirations of the house. Inspired by old mail slots, the designer worked the concept of memory into the niches. In each of the compartments, travel guides and other pieces collected by the professionals were accommodated. “As it was a house of memories, we wanted to display some of the resident’s travel objects,” explains Bruno.

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Made of MDF, the piece of furniture was approximately 11 m wide by 1.80 m high, and 35 cm deep. The risk of the grandiosity of the bookcase culminating in a crude result was overcome by the professional's careful carpentry work. To give fluidity and lightness to the piece, the doors were created with subtle joints that were reminiscent of origami. The detail gave the sensation of movement. When opened, the doors were projected beyond the volume of the furniture, providing a play of light and shadow. integration with the rest of the environment was also reinforced with the choice of roasted coffee tones for the piece, which harmonized with the charred wood, using the Japanese Shou Sugi Ban technique, present in the slatted panel that connected the house to the garden.

Paloma says that the bookcase was not part of the original project. Initially, the atmosphere would be the same, but the space would only be lined with wood. “We were missing a highlight like that, something that was really important, with a larger proportion. , that had something different”. It was from some references and photos that the idea began to sprout, among them was the image of the main suite of the La Alondra hotel, in Asunción, Paraguay, posted by Pedro Ariel Santana, director of CASACOR content and relationship, on its Instagram account .

https://www.instagram.com/p/BQL-XL7DBj9

The idea was a success, the bookcase was among the most talked about pieces at the 31st edition of the São Paulo exhibition. With the end of CASACOR in July, the bookcase was broken up and donated to friends of the professionals. But for the project's admirers, the office has good news: “we are breaking down this shelf into other modules, the idea is to put it into production, we had a very good reception at CASACOR , everyone came and asked”, reveals the architect.