In the heart of Rome’s Trastevere district, STUDIOTAMAT has breathed new life into a hidden Liberty-style gem tucked away in the courtyard of a late 19th-century building along Viale di Trastevere. Once the caretaker’s house for the old train station—or a neighborhood doctor’s office, depending on who you ask—this forgotten villino has been reimagined as a refined urban hideaway for two.
Spread across three compact layered floors occupying 80 square meters and culminating in a lush, green terrace, the project began by carefully preserving the home’s most distinctive elements.
Restoring the front veranda with its delicate cathedral glass in soft greens, pinks, and yellows called for a mix of craft and technical precision.
The original rhythm and hues were respected, while the frame was rebuilt in steel and solar-control glass. By removing the old French door that once divided it from the house, the veranda now flows into the interior, extending the living space and bathing it in natural light that subtly shifts in tone throughout the day.
Inside, the intervention focuses on reconfiguring the layout, previously fragmented by a tight spiral staircase, and on the perception of the spaces.
The redesign is radical in gesture but sensitive in execution: by moving the kitchenette beside the veranda, space is opened up for a striking alternating-tread staircase in chestnut wood. Its first step, clad in Verde Alpi marble, becomes the sculptural base of a custom bookshelf built into the understair. Nearby, a mirrored chestnut storage unit conceals the laundry and enhances the sense of openness.
The living room gains new depth, framed by a soaring double-height window that looks out onto surrounding gardens, in quiet harmony with Munari’s iconic Falkland pendant lamps.
The custom kitchen, liberated from overhead cabinetry, is defined by a linear base topped in Verde Alpi marble and shaded drawers that fade from black to terracotta, echoing the beautifully preserved original terracotta floors. A deep blue volume organizes the ground floor’s services: fridge and pantry on one side, a discreet powder room on the other.
This bold block of color continues upward, passing through the mezzanine and defining the main bathroom on the top floor, where Nouveau furnishings by Ex.t meet the textured surfaces of Patricia Urquiola’s Mater tiles for Mutina and fixtures by Formafantasma for Quadro Design.
To bring in light and create a sense of airiness, the mezzanine has been partially opened, introducing a double-height void.
Glass floor panels offer glimpses between levels, while mirrored panels below bounce reflections upward, visually expanding the space and enhancing the blue volume. The remaining floors are finished in Foret parquet by Oscar Ono Paris, designed by Raphael Navot—preassembled oak slats with visible end grain, a nod to the pebble streets of 19th-century Paris and ancient Rome.
A custom bed with drawer base and integrated headboard echoes the kitchen’s color gradient, creating visual continuity between the levels.
A second spiral staircase in raw iron with cherry wood treads connects the sleeping area to the upper level, serving as a sculptural focal point for the studio space. A glass partition, echoing the veranda’s rhythm with alternating clear and ribbed panels, elegantly screens the bathroom: the door doubles as a backdrop for the shower, while a Verde Alpi marble sink slices through the glass, becoming a shared counter surface.
Outside, the terrace features compacted stone paving in two shades of green, blending into the surrounding vegetation and reflecting the palette.
“The first step was subtraction—to give breathing room to these compact floors. We preserved the essential structure and original terracotta floors, but played with pure volumes, reflected surfaces, and a strong material thread. The mirrored ceiling above the blue volume creates a sense of vertical infinity. It was about amplifying spatial dynamism while keeping a coherent language throughout.”
says Matteo Soddu, Co-Founder of STUDIOTAMAT.
Discreetly nestled in one of Rome’s most characterful neighborhoods, this intervention captures the quiet charm of Trastevere. Just like the district itself, where modest façades often hide unexpected treasures, this project reveals the latent beauty of a neglected house.
Merging memory with material, and history with contemporary sensibility, STUDIOTAMAT has created a deeply rooted, yet strikingly modern urban refuge.
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About STUDIOTAMAT
STUDIOTAMAT is an Italian architecture and design studio based in Rome.
It was born in 2014 from an encounter between Tommaso Amato, Matteo Soddu and Valentina Paiola, who are united by their passion for energy and environmental issues, to industrial design and to the study of the detail. Its design method is based on the search for balance between usability of space and functionality of materials, to create atmospheres that redefine the multiple attitudes of living. Working 360° on the design space, from the architectural elements to the furnishing components, the studio has a flexible work team, comprising collaborators, artisans, companies and high-level workers, who care deeply for all the spaces of everyday life.
STUDIOTAMAT mainly deals with residential architecture, interior design, exhibition design and retail projects.
Condominio Monti, a boutique hotel overlooking the Colosseum, renovated in 2019 and Tre de Tutto, a bar completed in 2021 in the heart of Garbatella neighborhood, have been featured in various architecture and design magazines. Currently, the studio is working on the sites of various private residences, hospitality and lifestyle projects. Among these are the renovation of an apartment in the heart of Rome’s historic center, just off Via del Corso, as well as a villa in Sabaudia’s Journalists’ Village, alongside the development of a new restaurant, located on the ground floor of the upcoming The Social Hub at the former Ex Dogana site in San Lorenzo, Rome.
In parallel, STUDIOTAMAT has recently launched OFFTAMAT, a series of events that delve into collaborative design, fostering creative synergy between designers, artisans, creative workshops, and companies.
Facts & Credits
Project title A Liberty Villino in Trastevere
Typology Renovation, Residential
Location Rome, Italy
Architecture STUDIOTAMAT, (Tommaso Amato, Matteo Soddu e Valentina Paiola)
Project Team Tommaso Amato, Matteo Soddu e Valentina Paiola, Silvia D’Alessandro
Contractor Editel B
Client Private
Interior surface 80 sqm
Outside surface 30 sqm
Assignment March 2023
Start of work July 2023
Completion May 2024
Photography Serena Eller, Ellerstudio
Text provided by the architects
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