Project Name: House in Brianza

Location: Como, Italy

Design Team: Studio Gerosa

Total Floor Area: 400 m²

Completion: 2024

Photography: Giacomo Albo

Design Features:

Project - House in Brianza, designed by architect Andrea Gerosa and engineer-architect Franco Gerosa, stands as a masterful exploration of transparency and architectural restraint nestled near Lake Como. This 400-square-meter contemporary villa, with its expansive glazed façade and windows, visually dissolves the boundary between interior and exterior, redefining contemporary living experiences through a profound dialogue between built form and natural surroundings.

The project's most striking feature lies in its extended glazing system, which effectively erases the traditional boundary between indoor and outdoor spaces. This transparent threshold creates a seamless visual continuum, inviting the landscape to become an integral component of the living experience. Thanks to close collaboration with landscape architect Valerio Cozzi, the garden is intimately intertwined with the architecture, becoming an inseparable part of the architectural composition. The living area extends towards the northeast, facing a ten-by-four-meter infinity pool clad in classic travertine. The pool serves as both a reflective surface and an architectural focal point, amplifying the overall sense of openness.

The architectural narrative unfolds through clear structural logic, demonstrating remarkable engineering intelligence. What distinguishes this residence is its structural clarity. The perimeter framework, constructed from cast-in-place concrete and finished with specialized plaster, serves as the singular load-bearing element for the entire envelope. This monolithic approach not only ensures exceptional solidity but also minimizes future maintenance requirements, demonstrating a commitment to architectural longevity. The concrete structure anchors the building firmly to the ground, creating a robust foundation for the ethereal glazed volumes above.

The villa's horizontal composition is completed by a large gabled roof featuring remarkable 10.5-meter overhangs. These deep eaves provide essential solar protection while emphasizing the building's connection to the landscape, creating sheltered transitional zones that mediate between enclosed and open space. The roof's grand scale contrasts with the ground level's transparency, visually balancing the overall architectural composition.

The spatial organization follows a clear functional hierarchy. The sleeping quarters unfold sequentially from the entrance, establishing a defined spatial sequence. The separation of private and social spaces is achieved through careful planning, ensuring privacy while maintaining overall spatial fluidity. The openness of the living areas contrasts with the intimacy of the bedroom zones, creating a rich spatial experience.

The façade treatment demonstrates the refinement of strategic design. The glazing placement is precisely considered to maximize landscape views while ensuring interior comfort. The contrast between the concrete frame and glass surfaces reinforces the building's constructional logic, making structural elements part of the design language. The specialized plaster finish lends the concrete surfaces a refined texture, elevating overall architectural quality.

The project's defining feature is its unwavering pursuit of material authenticity and constructional logic. The use of cast-in-place concrete is not merely a structural choice but an expression of architectural aesthetics. By exposing the load-bearing system as a visible design element, the building demonstrates an honest constructional attitude. This approach embodies respect for material essence, avoiding unnecessary decoration and allowing the structure itself to become the source of architectural expression.

House in Brianza emerges from a profound understanding of contemporary lifestyles and a keen response to the Como Lake regional environment. Through carefully choreographed transparency, solid structural foundation, and generous spatial dimensions, this residence proves how contemporary residential design can achieve poetry through precision, dissolving boundaries while maintaining structural integrity. The project demonstrates Studio Gerosa's commitment to enduring architectural value, creating a living environment both rooted in place and oriented towards the future.

Design Team - Studio Gerosa, established in 1977, has distinguished itself as a prominent architectural practice operating across public and private sectors in Italy. Led by the combined expertise of engineer-architect Franco Gerosa and architect Andrea Gerosa, the firm brings together nearly five decades of experience in architectural design, complex structures, and bespoke interior furnishings. The studio's comprehensive approach integrates multiple disciplines from initial conception through construction and testing, ensuring high-quality outcomes tailored to client needs.

Franco Gerosa holds degrees in both civil engineering and architecture from Politecnico di Milano and currently serves as President of the Order of Engineers of Como Province. He possesses extensive background in public works and urban planning, with particular expertise in educational facilities and territorial preservation. His career includes serving as head of the Public Works and Urban Planning sector at the Technical Office of Seregno, during which he directed construction of several important educational buildings. Franco Gerosa has actively participated in activities of the Order of Engineers of Como Province, fulfilling roles including advisor, vice president, and president of the associated foundation, and has served as president of the association since 2013, while also being a member of the Regional Consultation of Lombard Engineers.

Andrea Gerosa graduated with honors from the Faculty of Architecture in Milan in 2002, with a thesis on the redevelopment and refunctionalization of the San Vittore prison area in Milan, winning the Pier Daniele Melegari Prize as the best thesis of the 2001-2002 academic year. From 2002 to 2014, he served as tutor and co-supervisor of theses at the Faculty of Civil Architecture at Politecnico di Milano in the fields of urban planning and landscape architecture. Since 2003, he has practiced independently, developing and realizing numerous public and private projects with Studio Gerosa, gaining particular experience in designing educational, residential, and industrial buildings, with attention devoted to coordinating various disciplines and specializations contributing to projects, focusing on constructional and technological detail development combined with architectural design and environmental integration. In 2009, he co-founded AUSarchitetti with others, a professional network dedicated to architectural design and open spaces. He dedicates himself passionately to design and furniture accessories, presenting Millemiglia at the 2017 Milan Furniture Fair for the DURAME brand, a new green seating completely in solid wood.

Over the years, Andrea Gerosa has received various awards and recognition in competitions in architecture, urban design, and public space redevelopment. Among the most significant: 2014, LP house recognized work in Opera Prima, Lombard Architects; 2014, LP house mention in Constructed Architecture Integrated Project award INARSID-LAC Brescia; 2014, design competition for redevelopment of Piazza Roma, Piazza Grimoldi and Via Pretorio, Como, first prize; 2014, design competition for redevelopment of Piazza Volta, Piazza Jasca and Via Garibaldi, Como, second prize; 2011, new urban park and city center Area Riva, Avigliana, first prize; 2010, historic center redevelopment, Magreta, joint first prize; 2010, Punta Marina Terme redevelopment, Ravenna, third prize; 2009, former Salamini area redevelopment, Parma, second prize; 2007, Piazza Giovanni XXIII redevelopment, Vermiglio, third prize; 2005, lakefront redevelopment, Malgrate, first prize. From 2011 to 2014, he served as member of the building commission of Inverigo.

Studio Gerosa collaborates with trusted consultants and specialists, developing professional synergies to address increasingly specific competency requirements. The firm's portfolio encompasses feasibility studies, residential and commercial projects, public infrastructure, structural design, urban master planning, interior spaces, restoration work, and construction management, demonstrating a holistic approach to contemporary architectural practice. The studio's design philosophy emphasizes complete integration from initial project conception through construction site implementation and final testing, ensuring every project achieves exceptional quality standards.

Studio Gerosa, as a full-service architectural practice, demonstrates proficiency across diverse typologies, encompassing residential architecture, tertiary and commercial architecture, industrial architecture, public and sports architecture, infrastructure and network projects, structural engineering, urban planning, master plans and public spaces, interior spaces and custom furnishings, and restoration and conservation. Through a diverse portfolio spanning from large-scale public facilities to refined private residences, Studio Gerosa has established a solid reputation in Italian contemporary architecture, demonstrating consistent commitment to creating enduring architectural value. These buildings not only satisfy functional requirements but also embody profound understanding of environmental, cultural, and social responsibility. The firm believes in architectural permanence and infuses all work with dedication to those elements that maintain architectural value through time.