A hidden gem of Italian modernism is revived in a Turin apartment

What might have started like a standard renovation of a modernist apartment in Turin has actually become a deeply complex endeavor for Studio Marcante-Testa: a confrontation with the construction of architectural history, with the very origins of its myths and icons. Architectural history is no monolith, certainly not the monolithic version often taught over the decades. For instance, in the 1950s, when Turin was seen as a hub of Neoliberty design (think Bottega d’Erasmo or late Carlo Mollino), which echoed in Milan’s Torre Velasca or Pineta di Arenzano on the Ligurian coast, alternative research paths also thrived. And beyond the well-known names, there were other characters, not to mention the possibility that these characters were women. This is where Ada Bursi comes in.

Beneath the monolith of a male-dominated Modern history, Ada Bursi – the first registered woman architect in Turin, and among the first in Italy – never rose to prominence, nor did she get the center stage. Yet, especially through her work in public administration, she carved out her own independent path. In this overlooked space, she developed an advanced form of Modernism: socially driven, rooted in democratic urban living, and distinguished by its focus on materials and details that subtly elevated everyday environments, guaranteeing powerful effects. This form of Modernism can still be found in that area Turinese locals call Precollina – nestled between the river, the city, and the forested hills that reach into its historic core. In 1958, an understated apartment building was completed in Borgo Crimea, its quiet elegance mirroring that of its designer. The façade already spoke a contemporary, refined language: non-complanar, non-parallel surfaces, hybrid loggia-terraces, and a striking interplay of white planes, geometric lines, and color blocks in a palette of greens, turquoise, and light blues.

Marcante Testa worked on a duplex combining the top floor and attic, addressing two distinct architectural chapters: the original construction and a later renovation by Maria Grazia Conti Daprà, whose contributions were preserved and integrated. Each historical layer was embraced and valorized, just like the overall mid-century atmosphere and that notion of “democratic luxury” that defined Bursi’s work. A new resin floor marked by strips of glass mosaic defines spatial trajectories, visually linking the interiors to the decorative language of the exterior. In the living room, interventions combine, which might get someone evoking Carlo Scarpa references: the removal of a raised platform was highlighted through metallic laminate detailing, while a stone base now replaces missing steps, completing the original staircase. This key design feature floats on a steel spine with cantilevered wooden treads and a wooden handrail suspended from metal cables, appearing to hover weightlessly in the room.

The kitchen features new custom cabinetry inspired by the original designs, juxtaposing matte and glossy finishes in true mid-century fashion, while the floor continues seamlessly from the balcony, merging inside and outside.
It is a dialogue that extends into the choice of furnishings, which combine chairs by Jasper Morrison and Arflex's 1950s armchairs, and especially in that galaxy of custom details, of essentialized decorations dominated by color blocking in primary or pastel tones that recur in the language of the studio, here committed to giving voice to a bourgeois living extremely rooted in the present time, aiming to meanwhile give as the designers themselves say “new life to Ada Bursi”.