Context
A former Genoese apartment, located in the historic centre of the city of Chiavari, in the region of Liguria, had to be renovated and divided into two units. The apartment having remained uninhabited for a long time, it still bears the marks of this abandonment and requires a heavy intervention to make it habitable again.However, the original atmosphere and the richness of its spaces were untouched and were just asking to be dusted off.

Between constraints and imaginary
The paramount need was to provide a pragmatic response to the technical, programmatic and aesthetic constrains, by conducting a restoration campaign essential to the success of the project. The challenge was to find its original charm, but also to reveal the potential of the new part. Overcoming constraints and relying on imagination to recreate an atmosphere.

The four project actions:

1 To solidify 
The wooden structure of the floors is covered in original cement tiles. These floors support, on the lower level, frescoed vaults. Unfortunately, the structure was beginning to show signs of weakness and significant vibrations were felt. A structural intervention was needed to make the apartment habitable again. 

However, the operation was technically delicate for three reasons:

• The frescoed vaulted ceiling, fixed below to the floor structure, should not be damaged 

• The original cement tiles were to be carefully removed without damage so they could be reused in the new project once the floor structure was recovered.

• The seismic regulations imposed specific technical interventions: the new concrete slab, which supported the floor, also needed to support the old beam structure and the vaults, while providing acceptable flexibility between the three elements. 

2 To distribute
The typical layout for an apartment built at that time provided a spacious blind centrepiece used as entrance and only connected to the living space. The general distribution was from room to room with doors that opened in line one after the other along the façade.
This distribution was no longer suited to the current lifestyles. The separation into two apartments required the creation of two bathrooms where the old entrance once stood.
For these reasons, in order to regain a more central distribution - more appropriate to the modern lifestyle - a large opening was created at the intersection of two bearing walls. This intervention was a key element in the design of the project, because it completely changed the spaces distribution. This intersection functions now as direct access to the two bedrooms, the mezzanine and to the bathrooms. 

3 To Restore 
The goal for the intervention in the four rooms facing the façade was to keep their unique style. Three of these rooms still have the existing vaults that have been simply restored to their original status. In the fourth room the vault collapsed during intervention and this inspired us to create a mezzanine that made use of the full height under the ceiling. 

The ceramic tiles were relayed but since some were damaged during the removal and it wasn’t possible to reconstruct the original pattern, we opted for a so called “carpet” technique to recreate in a smaller size the original drawing. We poured a brown resin in the centre of each room (the only colour that all the tiles had in common) that was used as unifying element to all the four rooms.

The walls were repainted matching the previous colours and the windows were rebuilt like the originals by a local craftsman.

4 To Add
The project required the creation of two bathrooms, of storage cupboards, a small laundry and a technical space for the installation of the air handling unit. The entrance, blind and without vaults, was suitable for hosting this programmatic addition. This is where the intervention on the apartment is the most apparent, where the contrast between ancient and contemporary is highlighted.

In order to hide the technical elements, the ceiling was lowered thus creating a more intimate atmosphere of the room, while promoting the discovery of the great vaulted spaces.

The materials used were different from those used in the original apartment in order to create a contrast and a special atmosphere in that space.

The result is an objective assessment of constraints: the place, the program, the seismic standards and flows. This data led to strategies and reflections whose project is the synthesis between constraints and imaginary.

Material Used :
1. Cement tiles: originals that were reused after removal. They did not need sanding, just a pore filler layer to protect their surface and give them shine.

2. Resin: cement based, it was used on the edges of the cement tile ‘carpet' and in the bathroom floors. 

3. Marbles: were used in the bathrooms, and from a local quarry (EuroslateCicagna). A white Carrara marble and a Brazilian “blue-dream” were chosen to create two different atmospheres.

4. Plug connectors: composed of a 75x50x4 mm base plate, shaped with studs, with two holes for the insertion of two 10 mm diameter lag screws with truncated conical subheads, and a 12 mm diameter galvanized steel rod, assembled to the plate by cold stamping. This system makes it possible to transmit part of the 'cutting' forces generated by the bending of the wooden beam to the new concrete floor.

5. Cladding: false ceilings and floors in the entrance room were made of Okume marine plywood sheets which is an economical material often used in the region for boat interiors. 

6. Lighting : In the bathrooms we installed lights from Sammode, a French, family driven, manufacturer specializing in the field of industrial  fluorescent tubes while In the entrance and in the vaulted rooms we chose LED spotlights by Norlight.