Step inside a tranquil, timber-wrapped São Paulo apartment that practically hovers above the city
A family duplex, designed by studio Jacobsen Arquitetura, was designed to feel 'suspended above the city'
A São Paulo apartment was designed to engage with its urban context, but at the same time, feel like it's 'suspended above the city'. The family home, a duplex titled ELB Apartment, centrally located within the Brazilian metropolis, occupies the top levels of an apartment building and had its interior throughout – and its top level especially – thoroughly redesigned by local studio Jacobsen Arquitetura.
Explore an expansive São Paulo apartment by Jacobsen Arquitetura
The architects worked on the two-level interior, drawing on functional arrangement – placing social areas and bedrooms on the first floor, in a more conventional single-family home layout, and bonus spaces for entertainment on the second. The home's exterior was kept unaltered to ensure the building's exterior continuity remains. Any changes concerning windows and shading were tackled internally, though the addition of bespoke shutters and curtains.
The communal areas are generous and open-plan, wrapped in warm timber cladding that envelops the interior across walls and ceilings. Jacobsen Arquitetura's modernist architecture brand heritage (an approach also witnessed in past work, such as this low-slung residential complex) helped inform the design direction and interiors, which led to a space filled with warm and neutral colour tones and lush, soft fabrics. The main family bedrooms are also hosted on this floor.
The fully reimagined upper level contains a family room, a game room, a children's playroom, and a wine cellar. Importantly, the duplex São Paulo apartment's top area sprawls out to an expansive terrace which opens to long views of the city skyline and creates the impression of hovering just above its buildings.
The outdoors area is connected seamlessly to the interior through operable floor-to-ceiling glazing. This is framed by a prefabricated laminated wood roof and pillars, which serve as brise-soleils and light filters.
This makes the home's upper section illuminate from within like a lantern at night, marking its presence in the city – albeit a landmark softened by carefully planted greenery on the roof garden.
This presence of nature is enhanced through the material selection throughout – the palette includes the aforementioned wood, but also stone floors, a blend that feels both contemporary and timeless.
