Renovations are always a challenge—but layer on iconic architecture, decades of family memories, and a personal relationship with the client, and a project becomes something else entirely. It’s no longer a space to transform freely, but rather an environment to be treated faithfully, a story to be followed.

This was the case for a recent project by SAO Arquitetura in São Paulo, Brazil. Not only did it involve the renovation of a condo in a midcentury building designed by famed Brazilian architect Artacho Jurado, but it would be the home of Alexandre Skaff, principal at SAO, and his husband André Previato, whose grandmother previously lived in the apartment.

“It’s always an additional challenge to design something personal,” says Alexandre, who executed the renovation with his partner, Simone Carneiro. “But this particular project carried an immense load of affective memory for André.”

Before: Living room

André’s grandmother purchased the 2,583-square-foot apartment, located on Paulista Avenue, during the building’s construction in 1960. When the couple began looking for a larger home in 2018, André’s parents asked if they’d like to buy it. They spent a weekend in the home to get a sense of what it would be like to live there, and they fell in love.

After: Living room

The 26-story building is located at the highest point of the city, and the apartment is on the 18th floor, but the original layout failed to maximize the views or gracefulness of the home. The fact that it was filled with custom furniture by midcentury Brazilian designer Salvatore Dinucci added a layer of complexity, as the couple intended to keep many of the pieces.

The goal was to deftly blend contemporary and modern, new and old, while respecting the ethos of the original architecture. “It was impossible to ignore the fact that we were doing a makeover in a building designed by Jurado,” says Alexandre, noting that the abundance of ornamentation and organic shapes led them to incorporate features they normally wouldn’t in a project.

“Unlike other projects of SAO Arquitetura, which values more timeless design, this project has a little more color and texture,” he adds. “We needed to develop a project that would create a dialogue with the building.”

Before: Sofa

Typically, decor comes after construction—but here, the furniture selection happened in tandem with the architectural design, as they knew they couldn’t accommodate every original piece.

After: Sofa

They spent an afternoon choosing which items would stay—a buffet with a vinyl sound system, the dining table and chairs, a four-cushion sofa with a slender silhouette, glass orb pendants, among others—with André sharing family stories about each piece.

“The combination of the old and the contemporary was really a challenge,” says Alexandre. “It's not what we usually work on in our office, but it was the only way to do this project.” The original pieces feature intricate woodwork and ornamentation, which the couple balanced with more modern and subdued furniture so that “it wouldn’t look like we entered an antique shop,” Alexandre says. They kept the new additions neutral to let the restored furniture shine.

They reconfigured the floor plan to create a more open living and dining area with a seamless connection to the kitchen, using the furniture to delineate different spaces. They added an island that functions as an extension of the kitchen with a bar area for entertaining. Finished with terrazzo, it was the most complicated piece of the renovation.

Before: Island

“It needed to look perfect, with rounded corners and a subtle line in copper gold that would connect with the floor terrazzo detail and the round light fixtures,” explains Alexandre. “It was the work of many professionals, but we did it very calmly, step by step, and it really turned out well.”

After: Island

To create visual harmony, they selected a limited material palette to be used throughout the home. The kitchen, bathrooms, and laundry all incorporate the same nero marquina marble countertops and muted turquoise cabinetry—a color seen again in the bedroom—while the terrazzo of the island is repeated on the terrace, as well as the bathroom and kitchen floors. Shades of green permeate the apartment, not only in the rich forest velvet on the sofa and armchairs but also through the abundance of plants.

After: Kitchen

While the island is the couple’s favorite place in the home—it’s great for parties—the couch, reupholstered in a deep green velvet embroidered with tropical foliage, is “really our baby,” says Alexandre. It’s also one of the most meaningful pieces.

“When it was finished, André’s family was thrilled to see his grandmother’s furnishings restored,” says Alexandre. “This was a work with many stories and memories.”

Before: Dining area

After: Dining area

Before: Bedroom

After: Bedroom

After: Bathroom

Related Reading:

An Amazing Garden Oasis in São Paulo Born from a Five-Year Search

A Deteriorating 1950s Apartment in São Paulo Gets Revamped and Greened-Up

Project Credits:

Architect of Record: SAO Arquitetura / @sao_arquitetura

Builder: Vita

Landscape design: Renata Fanti

Interior design: SAO Arquitetura

Cabinetry: Djen and Real Moves

Terrazzo: Casa Franceza

Appears In

Before & After: A Couple Give a Treasured Family Home a Fresh Start—Furniture and All