Casa RC rebuilds a Bergamo apartment around its old corridor

Living room of Casa RC with the Tour_D ring light and red bookcases

Casa RC sits at the foot of the Venetian walls in central Bergamo. The 150-square-metre apartment fills part of an early-20th-century building on the corner of Viale Vittorio Emanuele II and Via Antonio Locatelli. CN10Architetti renovated it between 2024 and 2025.

Early-20th-century building on a corner in central Bergamo that houses Casa RC

Pilasters, large windows, balconies, cornices and concrete ornament shape the facade. The building belongs to the Lombard Novecento movement, and the project set out to keep that original character. So the rooms change, but the traces of their history stay in place.

Balconies, windows and concrete ornament on the facade of the building

A corridor at the centre

The corridor is where the design begins. Instead of removing it, the architects kept it as the main space of Casa RC and arranged the new layout around it. Birch panels now line its walls, while a vaulted ceiling recalls early-20th-century interiors.

Original glazed door opening onto the corridor of Casa RC

Birch-panelled corridor with a vaulted ceiling

Corridor with a red bookcase and Portoro marble floor

Salmon chest of drawers set in an arched niche

Corridor with blue and salmon fitted cabinets

Birch panels and the Portoro marble circle at the end of the corridor

Birch wall meeting the Portoro marble floor

New openings and fitted furniture blocks also tie the main rooms to the service spaces. One unit stands between the bedroom and the walk-in wardrobe. Another sits between the kitchen and the laundry.

What stayed

Preservation covers the objects of daily life too. The original wood and glass interior doors were restored, along with the cast-iron radiators. The existing timber floors stayed, and new parquet fills in where needed. In the kitchen, the original cementine tiles sit beside the new work.

Living room looking through glazed doors to the dining room

Only two new materials enter the flat. First, Portoro marble marks the thresholds and forms a large circle on the floor where the corridor meets the living room. Second, pearl-grey glass mosaic lines the bathroom.

Portoro marble circle at the entrance to the living room

Arched opening above the Portoro marble circle

Living room corner with a red armchair and bookcase

Colour

Colour joins old and new surfaces. Brick red, powder blue, salmon, blue and sage green meet the white, yellow, black and grey already in the home. As a result, the palette carries across walls, materials and furniture.

Living room wall of birch panels and red bookcases at Casa RC

Birch sliding panels and red shelving in the living room

Open birch panel revealing a view to the room beyond

Red shelving unit with the dining room visible through the opening

Red bookcase beside a birch panel and marble floor

Light and furniture

Lighting gives each room its own identity. In the kitchen, two red Smithfield lamps by Flos add a strong note of colour. Dioscuri fixtures by the same brand light the bathroom and other rooms.

Kitchen with two red Smithfield lamps over a red table

Red table leg on the original cementine tiles

Sage green kitchen cabinetry with open shelving

Bathroom lined in pearl-grey glass mosaic

Bathroom vanity with a round mirror and Dioscuri lights

Circular openings in the mosaic-clad bathroom wall

In the living and dining rooms, two pieces by Linea Light take over. The large Tour_D ring makes the stronger visual mark. Meanwhile, the Perla P12 chandelier hangs over the space for shared meals.

Dining room looking toward the living room and the Tour_D ring light

Tour_D ring light suspended in the living room

Dining room with the Perla P12 chandelier

The dining room holds the Long Island table by Rimadesio, Claretta chairs by Miniforms and the Echo sideboard by FIAM. In the bedroom stands the Eosonno bed by Poltrona Frau. These pieces sit alongside the custom furniture and the colour scheme of Casa RC.

Bedroom of Casa RC with the Eosonno bed and tall windows

Salmon wardrobe block between the bedroom and walk-in wardrobe

Salmon wardrobe block seen from the bedroom

Salmon wardrobe with a view to the next room

Salmon and blue wardrobe doors in the walk-in wardrobe

Drawings

Plan of demolition and new construction for Casa RC

Project Credits

Project: Casa RC
Location: Bergamo, Italy
Size: 150 m²
Year: 2024–2025
Client: Private

Architecture and works direction: CN10Architetti / @cn10architetti
Contractor: CoGeMa srl
Custom furniture: ESSEPI
Photography: Giacomo Albo / @giacomoalbo