Designing for Everyday Use, Not Just Visual Impact
It’s easy to be seduced by bold shapes and Instagrammable moments, but the true success of a space is often measured in quieter terms. How does a building age over time? How does it respond to use, weather, or change in function?
In recent projects like the M Line Apartments in Lisbon or the Corten House in Marseille, we explored how minimal interventions — light studies, circulation rethinks, or simple thresholds — can fundamentally shift the way people inhabit a space. These gestures might not always be visible in photos, but they are felt in everyday use.
We often ask: what is it like to return home every day? What does a child experience when walking into a classroom? These small, repeated moments are what architecture is built upon — not grand entrances or sharp corners.
Building in Context: Urban, Cultural, Climatic
Every site speaks — through its light, orientation, scale, and history. As architects, we’re responsible for listening. That’s why our design process begins not in the studio, but on location — studying local materials, spatial patterns, and cultural rhythms.
Take our Vista Blanca Hotel in Cádiz: rather than compete with the coastal landscape, we chose to extend it. The building sits low and horizontal, echoing the dune lines. Local stone, native vegetation, and shaded courtyards do more than honor place — they shape thermal comfort, reduce footprint, and foster connection with the surroundings.
In this sense, “contextual design” goes beyond aesthetics — it’s about ecology, economy, and respect.
Collaboration as a Core Design Tool
No building is the work of one hand. From engineers and artisans to photographers and lighting designers, architecture is a shared craft. At Monocromo, we treat every collaborator as a co-author, not just a service provider.
For instance, our ongoing collaboration with Studio Verde (landscape) and Luminor (lighting) has transformed the way we design thresholds and transitions — especially in public and hospitality spaces. Similarly, working closely with sustainability consultants has helped us embed passive strategies from day one, rather than applying them as afterthoughts.
This collaborative spirit also extends to our clients. We approach each project as a dialogue, not a delivery — listening closely, refining iteratively, and building trust over time.
Dapted housing can improve the living
On Karmøy, an island on the southwestern coast of Norway, Snøhetta has designed three adapted homes for residents with serious substance abuse and psychiatric diagnoses. The design of the homes are based on results from a research project in which different shapes, materials and colours, as well as solutions for housing technology and fire safety, have been investigated to find solutions that can increase the quality of living for residents, strengthen HSE and safety for employees, as well as reduce the municipality's costs.
The goal is that the research will be scaled up to other municipalities, and in the future can provide good and lasting solutions for more people.
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