I recently attended a marvelous presentation by Sao Paolo, Brazil architects Marcio Kogan and Suzana
Glogowiski of Studio MK27. Marcio and Suzana are renowned for their sensuous and ebullient Modernism, and they bring their houses to life by filming them.
The film about their dazzling arrangement of horizontal solids and voids known as
“Toblerone House” — named for the folding partitions on the upper level, which mimic the zig-zag shape of the iconic chocolate bar — is funny and inspiring. The owners’ extravagantly fluffy, bewhiskered, architecturally curious,
and virtually unflappable Persian cat takes us on a very personal tour. We see the son
reading a book on the upper level while he casually dangles his feet over the concrete ledge, which doubles as the cat’s usual walkway (I’d say the approach to railings is somewhat nonchalant here!); the mother doing
yoga on the roof terrace, then dressing at the vanity while the father steps into the shower. Like the cat, these are remarkable clients! We see how each serene, minimalist, indoor-outdoor space beats with color, nature, and life as the cat’s tail twitches to the syncopated sound track. It’s a kind of unabashed but
generous voyeurism showing us how people really live — and how the house itself becomes a giant joyful veranda. According to the architects, such films are a way “to show the day by day life of one of our houses, where the architecture is not important.” This is very close to Bay Region architect William Wurster’s statement that “Architecture is about life, and work, and for people: the picture frame and not the picture.” A toast to Modernism at its warmest and most inviting. Marvelous! See the film on Dezeen, here.
For a collection of ready-made modern plans click here.
The film about their dazzling arrangement of horizontal solids and voids known as
“Toblerone House” — named for the folding partitions on the upper level, which mimic the zig-zag shape of the iconic chocolate bar — is funny and inspiring. The owners’ extravagantly fluffy, bewhiskered, architecturally curious,
and virtually unflappable Persian cat takes us on a very personal tour. We see the son
reading a book on the upper level while he casually dangles his feet over the concrete ledge, which doubles as the cat’s usual walkway (I’d say the approach to railings is somewhat nonchalant here!); the mother doing
yoga on the roof terrace, then dressing at the vanity while the father steps into the shower. Like the cat, these are remarkable clients! We see how each serene, minimalist, indoor-outdoor space beats with color, nature, and life as the cat’s tail twitches to the syncopated sound track. It’s a kind of unabashed but
generous voyeurism showing us how people really live — and how the house itself becomes a giant joyful veranda. According to the architects, such films are a way “to show the day by day life of one of our houses, where the architecture is not important.” This is very close to Bay Region architect William Wurster’s statement that “Architecture is about life, and work, and for people: the picture frame and not the picture.” A toast to Modernism at its warmest and most inviting. Marvelous! See the film on Dezeen, here.
For a collection of ready-made modern plans click here.
