Piccola Londra Guest Mansion | NOS Design

The initial inspiration for the project which deals with the conservation of an existing building has been to enhance its architectural heritage. The architectural elements and decorations reveal its own history, in combination with the creative hand of the Architect. This is the ambition and the challenge that guided Architect Benedetta Gargiulo Morelli, along with her studio NOS Design, in the recovery and expansion project for the villa of “Piccola Londra”.

The project for “Piccola Londra” Guest Mansion has been designed to reconstruct the villa’s original style and elegant character. Infact, most of the adjacent villas have lost this due to the many transformations, super-elevations and degradation. Furthermore, the elevation of the second floor broke the unifying nature of the building with its twin villa.
Before the works, the building had several issues to be solved: most of the rooms were underutilized or poorly preserved. The basement consisted of a large empty room and an out of service toilet. The mezzanine entailed two damp and unhealthy spaces. The second floor presented a kitchen with no dining area and a small terrace in front of it, which was the only means of access to the additional run-down terrace on the upper floor. Furthermore the garden on the ground floor, already penalized by the position in the backyard, was overgrown and inaccessible. How could such poor conditions preserve the initial charm of “Piccola Londra” sophisticated villa?