A hamlet of the municipality of Tremosine, Campione del Garda is a picturesque village overlooking the Brescian shore of Lake Benaco – better known as Lake Garda in Italy. Set in the green of the Alto Garda Park, it enjoys a close connection between woodlands, mountains and fresh water that make Campione del Garda a place devoted to water and outdoor sports enthusiasts from all over Europe.

From here, the idea of creating a real hub dedicated to anyone who wants to spend a vacation immersed in nature, in close contact with nature and practicing the activities they love most: from windsurfing to kitesurfing, from sailing to walking. And then again cycling, trekking and climbing.

So “North Wind Apartments” has gone through a real reconversion of interior design. Thanks to arcHITects, today it shows off its dual nature: a typical local working-class residence on the outside, a fun and modern structure for sharing and sports on the inside. The building that now houses the North Wind Apartments was – from 1896 to 1981 – part of the workers’ village of Campione del Garda where many of the workers of Giangiacomo Feltrinelli’s cotton mill lived, first, and then Vittorio Olcese.

The building consists of six large apartments, two per floor, each with its own independent balcony or garden. The studio has decided to dress “the North Wind Apartments” in a Californian style – with traditional Mexican details: wood – such as the parquet laid on a track -, colors, rope and raffia. A fresh and cool combination that smells of summer all year round: a touch & feel that from the apartments continues in the common areas, to recall the sense of community and conviviality typical of life on a boat.

For this project arcHITects chooses details with a strong graphic impact and geometries that recall sailing. The color is in fact used in triangular sections that follow the profile of the structure emphasizing its sporty character. The wallpaper that animates the staircase body, on the other hand, was created specifically for the project by Anton Firsik – Ukrainian Digital Artist – using the Pixel Art technique. A fundamental element to emphasize the uniqueness and character of the structure. The result is a mix and match of colors, dynamism and movement: it will seem to be aboard a sailboat but on dry land. Emblematic is in fact the choice to reproduce in the shared living areas the place in the square of the sailboat. “Sleeping in the squared place” means that you will spend the night on the sofa of the “day” area: in fact it is, the additional place for one or two guests. In the same way, arcHITects inserts sofa beds in the living rooms of the North Wind Apartments in a convivial and intimate square corner.

A storytelling made of colors and breathtaking views of the surrounding landscape: a constant dialogue between interior and exterior, like the cliffs that can be appreciated in their majesty from the common living room on the top floor under a small greenhouse to close the roof.

“North Wind Apartments” thus aims to be a reference point for outdoor enthusiasts but not only. It is a real act of enhancement of the territory. The goal is to create a sports and nature center in such an evocative location as Campione del Garda: a village that restores contact with the natural elements and encourages slow tourism.

arcHITects – Piantini

photo – Filippo Ferrarese