Designed from a deep desire for coziness and identity, the MC Apartment is the result of a project that aimed from the outset to reflect the personality of its residents: a couple with three young children looking for a spacious home that would suit both the family’s daily life and the needs of their regular in-house staff. The project was designed by Passos Arquitetura, an architecture firm known for its custom residential and commercial projects.
Measuring approximately 270 sqm, the apartment was completely reconfigured as a large pavilion to accommodate the family’s new way of living — including the central decision to give up one of the bedrooms in order to significantly enlarge the social area.
Based on this layout transformation, the project defined two contrasting yet balanced zones. On one side are the denser, darker spaces — such as the dining room, family room, and bedroom corridors — where natural wood and warm lighting prevail. On the other side, areas such as the TV room, service circulation, and entrance are lighter, brighter, and more open.
The layout was designed to fit the family’s routine, keeping the kitchen as a closed, functional space. Unlike many contemporary designs that integrate kitchen and living room, here the separation was intentional — to accommodate frequent use and allow room for the daily work of two to three staff members. Still, the project seeks visual connections and spatial continuity through sliding panels, transparent materials, and seamless lighting.
“Our concept was to connect all the spaces. That means not only through doors, but through transparency,” explains partner architect Thiago Passos. “We installed glass transoms above all partitions, making it possible to see the movement of the house even in separated rooms.”
The project’s aesthetic was inspired by a trip the residents took to Patagonia. The client expressed a desire to live in a space where she could feel “free, yet sheltered,” which guided the selection of a soft palette of white and natural oak, evoking the region’s dense, snow-covered Andean forests.
Another standout solution was the redesign of the circulation areas, which previously featured hard corners and right angles. The new layout softens these transitions with subtle curves and geometric shifts that enhance spatial flow and improve the experience of moving through the apartment.
A highlight of the lighting design is the use of Barrisol ceilings — stretched translucent membranes that mimic natural zenithal light and create a soft, diffused atmosphere. The feature was a response to the low ceiling height caused by the central air-conditioning system. The solution was to create a fragmented ceiling layout with translucent panels that distribute light gently while preserving a sense of spaciousness.
