Apartment RGF1 is a 170m2 refurbishment project located in the centre of Lisbon, in the Campo Mártires da Pátria area, which has been developed with the objective of creating a main home for a couple.

The pre-existing building had aspects with architectural and aesthetic value, such as the carved ceilings and rooms with ample areas, marked by plenty of exposure to the sun, both in the areas facing the façade and in the areas facing the rear. The various rooms and their original characteristics have been preserved, with the works focusing primarily on remodelling the “wet” rooms, namely the Bathrooms, Kitchen and Winter Garden, which contained fewer formal qualities.

The distinction between the private and social areas of the flat has been maintained. The master bedroom is accessed through a space that is both a dressing room and an office and, like the guest bedroom, is accessed from the entrance hall. The rest of the rooms are distributed throughout a single interior corridor.

It was decided to eliminate some of the doors, while keeping the openings between the social areas and the corridor, as well as between the rooms. This allows for free movement and a better relationship between the Living Room, Library and Dining Room areas.

The light colours used in painting the various rooms in the house seek to highlight the clarity present throughout the flat, through enabling the natural light that passes through each room to be reflected. The parquet flooring was kept, restored and lightened, making it a continuous element and one connecting the areas.

The intervention work in the Kitchen area has sought to continue the concept of fluidity between the spaces, through providing a wide opening into the Dining Room. The two passageways to the Winter Garden, together with the continuous microcement flooring, contribute to establishing the uniformity of these spaces and the welcoming experience of this area.

Despite the fact that this is traditionally a service area at the back, the aim was to maximise the living experience and permanence of this area, which benefits from generous natural lighting.

The two bathrooms make use of a combination of two materials, through the strategic application of stone on certain surfaces and microcement on the others. Lighter colours were chosen for the main bathroom, taking advantage of the indirect light that comes from the opening in the shower area, where the grooved glass offers privacy without harming the natural light.

In general, the intention was for the intervention works to result in a harmonious solution favouring visual coherence and a link between new and existing elements, through the judicious use of colour and materials.