In Piateda (Italy), EV+A Lab Atelier d’architettura has tranformed a pre-existent cattle/warehouse into Ca’ Giovanni House, with the aim of preserving as much as possible materials and form.
Consequently, on the external façades, the plaster was kept as it was, while inside it was completely removed from the walls, bringing back to light the original stone; about the roof, both the supporting structure and the chestnut wood paneling and the covering layer in rusty corrugated sheet have been maintained through recovery and restoration.
All the openings have been respected by inserting wooden frames, while the floor was made of concrete without any covering in order to re-propose the typical floors of the houses of the past; on the other hand, the lighting system consisting of simple cables to which the lights switches were connected.
On the ground floor, in the portion of the building used as a stable for the animals, a tavern was built while the warehouse was transformed into a studio; on the first floor, in the original hayloft, a kitchen and a living room have been created, while the bedroom and the bathroom have been made into the old storage room.
The custom made furnishings have been designed by the architect and some artisans and both the kitchen block and the fireplace were made of painted iron; in particular, the kitchen block was then completed with carpentry works (drawers and doors and also the bolts of the entrance doors have been commissioned to a skilled and expert locksmith.
In conclusion, Ca’ Giovanni House is a total recovery project, even because part of the furnishings (chairs, armchairs, wardrobes, chandeliers) have been “saved” from destruction, restored, and re-used.
