{"id":527310,"date":"2025-10-25T16:09:18","date_gmt":"2025-10-25T16:09:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/527310\/"},"modified":"2025-10-25T16:09:18","modified_gmt":"2025-10-25T16:09:18","slug":"atelier-vago-transforms-tuscan-chapel-into-pailunga-creative-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/527310\/","title":{"rendered":"Atelier Vago transforms Tuscan chapel into Pailunga creative space"},"content":{"rendered":"

Carlotta Di Sandro and Cecilia Marcheschi of Atelier Vago have added pops of bright blue and yellow to the Pailunga creative space in a deconsecrated chapel<\/a> near Pisa, Italy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Located in the countryside surrounding the village of Fauglia, Pailunga is a creative space offering residencies for artists, particularly musicians.<\/p>\n

\"Piano,Pailunga is a creative space designed for musician residencies<\/p>\n

It is the first completed project by Florence-based Atelier Vago<\/a>, commissioned by composer and psychologist Giulio Fagiolini.<\/p>\n

Fagiolini’s ambition was to “restore a spiritual vocation” to this near-ruined structure, which forms part of a historic farming estate once owned by the distinguished D’Achiardi family.<\/p>\n

\"FacadeThe facade was restored as part of the renovation<\/p>\n

“The little church once served as the liturgical and social centre for the surrounding community,” explained Di Sandro and Marcheschi.<\/p>\n

“Every Sunday, mass was celebrated here by the Salesians, aided by the wide, shaded garden outside, where worshippers could gather and linger.”<\/p>\n

\"CountrysideThe building previously served as a chapel for a farming estate<\/p>\n

Working to a tight budget, the designers planned a renovation that restored the facade of the old chapel and overhauled the interior, allowing it to function as both a live\/work space and a venue for intimate concerts.<\/p>\n

Clever use of colour allowed them to create character despite minimal interventions.<\/p>\n

“The colour palette lends the interiors a pop character, softening spaces that might otherwise feel austere,” said the duo.<\/p>\n

“The chromatic choices also reflect the intention to create a sharp contrast between the new insertions and the existing structure.”<\/p>\n

\"PianoPart of the staircase is mobile, so it can be moved during performances<\/p>\n

The new additions include a folded steel staircase, featuring a blue tone chosen to complement the remaining traces of a fresco on the chapel’s apse.<\/p>\n

This staircase connects the ground floor with\u00a0a recently added wooden mezzanine, which now serves as a bedroom. But it doesn’t extend all the way down to the ground.<\/p>\n

\"StaircaseBlue details match the remaining traces of a fresco on the chapel’s apse<\/p>\n

Atelier Vago designed an extra staircase, comprising just four steps, to complete the descent. This element is mobile, so it can be moved out of the way during performances.<\/p>\n

Other blue details include a custom-made balustrade, which echoes the building’s curved geometries, and the frame of the rose window in the bedroom space.<\/p>\n

\"BedroomThe same colour was applied to a rose window in the bedroom<\/p>\n

The use of yellow meanwhile references the building’s facade. It was chosen for door frames, bathroom fittings and various furniture elements.<\/p>\n

The designers describe their approach as “embracing the scars of the past and weaving them into new architectural gestures”.<\/p>\n

\"BalustradeA custom-made balustrade mirrors the building’s curved geometries<\/p>\n

“The architectural project is guided by the principle of enhancing what remains and preserving historical traces,” they said.<\/p>\n

“A house for art, anchored in the present yet projected into a timeless dimension, Pailunga is not merely to be considered a former place of worship adapted for residential and artistic use, but a stage for human creativity, capable of nourishing the soul and revealing the sacred within the everyday.”<\/p>\n

\"BathroomYellow details contrast the blue, picking up the tone of the facade<\/p>\n

The building welcomed its first resident, cellist Antonio Cortesi, in September. He was given access to recording equipment, guitars and a grand piano, and Fagiolini produced a recording of the results.<\/p>\n

Pailunga also serves as a part-time home and workspace for Fagiolini.<\/p>\n

The photography is by Carlotta Di Sandro.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Carlotta Di Sandro and Cecilia Marcheschi of Atelier Vago have added pops of bright blue and yellow to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":527311,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3939],"tags":[5722,4021,4020,170945,55634,134897,4022,77,2199,5224,17022,128541,126129,127074,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-527310","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-design","8":"tag-adaptive-reuse","9":"tag-arts","10":"tag-arts-and-design","11":"tag-chapels","12":"tag-cultural","13":"tag-cultural-buildings","14":"tag-design","15":"tag-entertainment","16":"tag-italy","17":"tag-renovations","18":"tag-residential-architecture-and-interiors","19":"tag-residential-conversions","20":"tag-sectionall","21":"tag-sectioninteriors","22":"tag-uk","23":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115435678544589859","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527310","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=527310"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527310\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/527311"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=527310"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=527310"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=527310"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}