Amantea House by Andrea Murao Arquitetura e Interiores: A Contemporary Single-Story Home Defined by Light, Comfort, and Spatial Fluidity

Located in Taubaté, Brazil, Amantea House is a 240-square-meter single-story residence designed by Andrea Murao Arquitetura e Interiores in 2023. Conceived as a contemporary family home, the project balances comfort, modernity, and a relaxed architectural language, where spatial clarity and natural light play a central role in shaping daily living.

From the earliest design stages, the architect envisioned a house that would go beyond functional requirements to foster a welcoming and emotionally resonant environment. The goal was to create interiors that feel open, luminous, and effortless, where architectural form, material choices, and natural light work together to enhance well-being. This intention is immediately expressed through the home’s single-story layout, sloped roof, and the generous ceiling height of the main living area, which introduces vertical spaciousness while maintaining a grounded, human scale.

Designing the Amantea House presented a significant challenge: accommodating an ambitious residential program on a relatively compact plot. The clients requested three suites, a walk-in closet, a TV room, a leisure area with a pool, a spacious kitchen, and fully integrated living spaces, all within a single level. Rather than compressing the layout, Andrea Murao addressed this complexity through a careful composition of volumes, planes, and transitions, allowing the house to feel expansive without excess square footage.

Spatial fluidity was achieved by organizing the plan in response to both the site geometry and solar orientation. As the plot widens toward the rear, the architect positioned the private areas, bedrooms and suites, at the front of the house on the eastern side, capturing the softer morning light. The social spaces unfold toward the back, facing north, where the living room opens seamlessly to the outdoor leisure area and swimming pool. This configuration maximizes daylight throughout the day while reinforcing a strong indoor-outdoor connection, a defining feature of contemporary Brazilian residential architecture.

One of the project’s most distinctive elements is the use of a metal structure in the living room, paired with a high ceiling and expressive roof geometry. While metal structures are uncommon in single-story homes in the Taubaté region, this choice allowed for greater structural freedom and spatial openness. The bold decision paid off, resulting in a living area that feels light, airy, and architecturally expressive, becoming the heart of the home.

Materiality plays a crucial role in reinforcing the house’s warm and inviting atmosphere. Light and natural finishes: such as moledo stone, extensive wood surfaces, and soft neutral tones, create visual continuity between interior and exterior spaces. These materials not only contribute to a sense of comfort but also reflect a timeless aesthetic that avoids excess ornamentation. In the private areas, color and textures were carefully selected to reflect the individuality of each resident, adding a personal layer to the architectural framework.

Beyond its technical and spatial solutions, Amantea House stands as a deeply personal project for the architect. The integration of spaces, the emphasis on natural light, and the restrained yet expressive material palette embody Andrea Murao’s design philosophy, where architecture serves both functional and emotional needs. The result is a contemporary Brazilian home that feels calm, fluid, and genuinely lived-in, an environment shaped as much by light and proportion as by the everyday rituals of its inhabitants.

All photographs are works of Renato Navarro