This bold and colorful Turku, Finland penthouse has been recently renovated by Rome-based architect Maurizio Giovannoni. The brief for the compact modern apartment was to ensure that there was plenty of light throughout and to create an inspiring and relaxing living room where the client could work. Walls had to be knocked down in order to ensure light could enter through the home. According to the architect, “The partial demolition of walls was a natural consequence, along with switching the location of the bedroom and living room. After fixing this, we decided on the overall ‘concept’ together with my client, organizing all the details that colored the white spaces.”

The architect’s concept was to merge the best of Finnish and Italian design by mixing them both to create something fresh and new. His concept was to use local Birch wood, Finnish vintage pieces and contemporary Italian design. “The result is what I now consider my own personal style: a blend of cultures. There is nothing more that stimulates me than to study different cultures and make cultural themes recognizable, but never intrusive in the project,” he said.

The flooring is covered with parquet of white ash; the shelves are birch including the kitchen table. Wood is a ubiquitous element in this apartment as it is in many Finnish properties, but the real attention grabber is the nature themed wall paper, carrying colors and contrasts and a typical Mediterranean ‘courage’. The furnishings are a mix of two cultures and of past and present — the grandmother’s armchair and the red floor lamp are vintage pieces from Finland in the 60s. The arc framing the wall paper is the famous Twiggy by Foscarini and the suspended lamps are Italian Olimpia by Ideal Lux. Everything blends in together to create perfect harmony.