Step inside this Italian home for design inspiration that’s anything but grey
The result is a small dream halfway between nonsense and fairytale, a house more illustrated than designed.
By Francesca Venturoni
Fornasetti’s “Capitello Ionico” chair sits at the head of the table. The artwork is by Sofia Cacciapaglia.Credit: Helenio Barbetta/Living Inside, Styling by Laura Mauceri
Architect Francesca Venturoni’s latest project is a residence within a historic building, where every corner of the house seems to tell a story. We are in Milan, on Via Archimede, a semi-central residential area that has become increasingly vibrant while maintaining a romantic and authentic atmosphere.
The design of this 140-square-metre home was commissioned by a couple, Andrea Magnaguagno and Francesca Pedrazzi, who had lived outside Italy for a long time. After moving between New York and Paris, they settled in Milan, where they started a family: first little Allegra, then Pietro. There are also two pets, Boston terrier Matcha and a cat called Gustavo, who coexist in perfect harmony.
“The process was straightforward and shared from the beginning,” says Venturoni. “As [Magnaguagno and Pedrazzi] work in the fashion and cosmetics industry, they had no resistance to taking risks. In fact, they explicitly asked us to play with colours and create a space that could accommodate elements of modernism, harmonising different styles and eras.”
Art deco motifs, such as the chequered tiles and arched seating area surrounded by storage, are repeated throughout the home.Credit: Helenio Barbetta/Living Inside
The owners are also collectors and, while they wanted to respect the classic and significant character of the building, they asked to avoid the “blank canvas” effect. The space distribution respected the previous layout, which was already functional, while adding a second bathroom and a small utility room. The corridor and entrance, usually considered transitional spaces in a home, became the focal points around which everything revolves.
In this sense, the colourful chequered patterns that extend from the floor to the walls, and the regular geometry that define the rooms, are an attempt to use the existing art deco atmosphere as a palette for mixing Milanese design, postmodernism and Fornasetti’s figurative graphic approach.
Venturoni explains: “We wanted to create a grid that would fit the different worlds of an extended and colourful family into its patterns.”
In the living room, symmetry prevails: on one side is the fireplace, and on the opposite side is a large work by Sofia Cacciapaglia. In the centre, on the herringbone floor, is the “Frate” table by Enzo Mari, camouflaged among a mix of seating and a welcoming sofa with free square modules on all sides. Beige walls are interrupted by cobalt blue, which entirely covers the ceiling as if it were an evening sky and returns as a chromatic element in two soft and sinuous-shaped rugs.
The entrance features Sanderson’s “Silvi Clouds” wallpaper. Credit: Helenio Barbetta/Living Inside
In the kitchen and bathrooms, chequered patterns are paired with the Sottsass-signed coverings. In the kitchen there is a pantry with an arched opening that accommodates a small table and a bench for quick breakfasts. In the long hallway, the chequered patterns become more modular, and the white and blue decoration covers the entire floor like a carpet that extends to the bedrooms.
Hay’s “Matin” lamp sits on a stool by Kartell. Credit: Helenio Barbetta/Living Inside
Beyond the strong accent colours on the floor and furnishings, most of the wall colours are warm, ranging from beige to egg-yolk yellow. The bedrooms also follow this pattern, with green and purple used exclusively for the wardrobes and small accents in the lighting, such as the two Ingo Maurer wall lights, Inga Sempé’s paper lamp, or the chandelier with curled pendants from the modern era.
The master bedroom, with a suspended structure supporting the curtain, creating an alcove effect, is entirely covered with nude-pink panelling with geometric patterns, with the wardrobe doors and bathroom door camouflaged. The presence of a curtain in muted orange fabric hints at the existence of a space that Francesca has defined as a “nook”. “It is a small room inside the larger one that houses the bed,” she says, describing it as “a non-place, a retreat used as a micro-study where one can isolate oneself and work in a hushed atmosphere”.
The overall result is a small dream halfway between nonsense and fairytale, a house more illustrated than designed, where we can easily imagine Lewis Carroll’s little Alice wandering through the rooms in search of an elusive rabbit.
The sink by Bleu Provence complements the vintage bathtub.Credit: Helenio Barbetta/Living Inside
“Mushroom” coffee tables by Henge are paired with an “Iris” rug by Illulian.Credit: Helenio Barbetta/Living Inside
The family on a “Pixel” sofa by SABA. On the fireplace is an “Oceanic” lamp by Memphis Milano and the artwork above it is by Nicolas Denino.Credit: Helenio Barbetta/Living Inside
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