Villa Porza
Pietra Forte FIorentina slabs with a sandblasted finish have been chosen by the architect Carlo Colombo for the exteriors of this residence overlooking the Lugano lakeside panorama, mainly laid as dry stone so as to conceal the run-off. Occasionally the stones even rise up vertically to embrace the flower boxes placed between the open paved spaces. The sandblasting creates a mellow dialogue with the surrounding natural area, further refining the residence’s rigorous lines, which partly respects the best of contemporary Helvetic tradition, and partly as a nod towards the techniques and shapes resulting from American architectural research. Inside, the light asperity typical of sandblasting makes way for a shiny polished and brushed finishing, concurring with the dominant sheen of the wooden staves and the reflections of the vast crystal glazing, arranged to project the interior into the surrounding panorama and to simultaneously bring the liquidity of the lake and the solidity of the Dolomites inside the building.