corpo atelier scatters pink limestone across a villa's white façades

‘cut ceilings and dyslexic ornaments’ by corpo atelier

In a quiet street of Faro, Portgual, local practice Corpo Atelier has restored and refurbished a traditional two-story white villa — interrupting its spaces and surfaces with colorful ‘cuts’ that recall the dwelling’s ruin-like quality. Each indoor and outdoor cut displays a natural material that gently contrasts the all-white backdrop. The architects completed the project in 2002, wittily titling it ‘cut ceilings and dyslexic ornaments’ — a clear nod to their simple yet impactful approach to residential restoration.

Corpo Atelier refurbished the villa back in 2022 | all images © Frederico Martinho

creating design accents and focal points

Inside, the Corpo Atelier team purposefully kept two types of white ceilings incomplete on both floors, revealing the wooden beams that support the first floor and roofing structure. Through such interventions, the architects successfully defined clear spatial centers for the social and bedroom areas. The first incomplete ‘spot’ in the living room takes on the shape of a cross while the second appears as a circle; at closer look though, the first floor ‘cut’ could very well evoke the shape of leaf with its series of beam alluding to individual ‘veins’.

Outside, pieces of pink limestone are scattered along three of the four white façades of the house, randomly highlighting specific architectural features: corners, edges, friezes, window frames, and the entrance door. While seemingly refreshed and punctuated by modern touches, the villa still exudes a rustic ambiance unique to Faro.

scattering pink limestone across the all-white façades