corpo atelier's apartment in vilamoura blurs the line between architecture and sculpture

corpo atelier has renovated a studio apartment in vilamoura, portugal, nearly dissipating the line between architecture and sculpture. inside a white box, three differently configured yellow objects are individually placed. as an immediate consequence, one’s physical experience of the previously empty space is dramatically altered. inside, the perception of a person’s movement, of the box’s limits and of the position of the yellow objects is inevitably intertwined.

all images by alexander bogorodskiy

under closer inspection, the pieces’ shapes might resemble an abstraction of the classical architectural elements: an architrave, a fallen column and a plinth, arranged separately as a puzzle, only to be revealed when mentally placed together, evoking the experience of a site-specific sculptural piece that engages with the containing space of a gallery room. or perhaps, these yellow objects only hold objective value as pieces of furniture, produced to store other smaller objects both inside and on them.

in such scenario, their arraignment might be justified simply as a naive attempt to create some kind of spatial hierarchy in a wall-less apartment, marking and defining different areas according to a specific domestic use: an entrance hall, a central living room and a bedroom with a panoramic view. it´s never truly clear which of these possibilities might be accurate, or, if any actually is.

project info:

architects: corpo atelier

location: vilamoura, portugal

date: 2018

team: filipe paixão, rui martins, susana café

constructor: window to the future

photography: alexander bogorodskiy

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: maria erman | designboom