The historic
Oswald Bratke building in Vila Buarque, São Paulo, has been transformed into
a cultural, gastronomic and residential complex . The Renata Sampaio Ferreira – the fifth building to be
retrofitted by the real estate management company Planta.Inc – has just been delivered.
With architectural updates and adaptations led by the
Metro Arquitetos office, owned by partners Martin Corullon and Gustavo Cedroni , the building, originally for commercial use, was transformed into a new and vibrant complex whose uses include short- and long-term apartments, restaurants, a bar, a café and event spaces.
Located approximately 300 meters from the
República subway station, on the corner of
Major Sertório and Araújo streets , the building is a valuable remnant of
modern São Paulo architecture and the legacy of one of its great masters,
Oswaldo Bratke (1907-1997) .
On the ground floor, integrated into the street, a new gastronomic complex will offer, from March 2024, the corner café Nata , which promises one of the best espressos in the city accompanied by classic French boulangerie and typical Brazilian breakfast recipes, the Lágrima bar , inspired by Tokyo's jazz bars, with high-fidelity sound and dedicated to fine cocktails, and the brasserie Renata Bar and Restaurant , with classics of French cuisine combined with tributes to contemporary São Paulo, which will be run by the French-Brazilian chef Patrick Bragatto .
Building architecture
The building was designed by the modern architect from São Paulo, Oswaldo Bratke (1907-1997), a professional colleague of such names as
Rino Levi, Gregori Warchavchik and Jacques Pilon . His body of work is marked by a strong residential production, with highlights including the residence in Morumbi of the couple Maria Luisa and Oscar Americano (1952), which currently houses the
Oscar Americano Foundation, and the Jaçatuba (1942) and ABC (1949) buildings, also located in Vila Buarque.
Along with landmarks such as the Copan and the former Hilton Hotel , the Renata Sampaio Ferreira is part of a group of six buildings
listed in 2012 by CONPRESP as part of the so-called “Modern São Paulo” , an urban complex of great historical and architectural value in the city center.
The building dates back to the mid-1950s and features innovative construction solutions when compared to Bratke's previous works, such as the predominance of exposed concrete , the program distributed across two large volumes, and the expressive use of floor-to-ceiling cobogós, notably used on the building's facades. The
open elements , which so well define the building's design identity, were preserved in the architectural project by
Metro Arquitetos . The team's long-standing, multidisciplinary experience includes urban interventions such as
Ocupa Rua (2020) – creating communal areas for people in parking spaces – in the city center, and requalification works such as the
new MASP annex, currently under development in a 14-story building on Paulista Avenue. At Renata, the firm proposed a new and complex distribution of uses, starting with the tower originally designed for office floors. Dedicated to short- or long-term housing, the radical reconfiguration of the spaces conceived five types of floor plans, totaling 93 units ranging from 25
m2 to 284
m2 . An important improvement adopted by the retrofit was the installation of
recessed façade frames with cobogós, resulting in an intermediate space with a veranda, sun and multifunctionality for residents. “Retrofitting is a transformative tool in cities because it offers a second chance to buildings that are often underused and outdated, but of great historical and heritage value. With roots in the history, identity and plurality of Vila Buarque, Renata Sampaio Ferreira is now returning to the vibrant life of the neighborhood as an address for exchanges and experiences between new residents, guests and visitors to the center,” explains
Guil Blanche, founder and CEO of Planta.In c.
