A Villa Between Cyberpunk And Listening Bar / Co.arch Studio

Architects: co.arch studio
Area: 250 m²
Year: 2025
Photography: Simone Bossi
Manufacturers: Artemide, Egoluce, Genuit
Lead Team: Andrea Pezzoli
Design Team: Giulia Urciuoli, Matteo Torti, Gaia Uslenghi, Federica Leonardi
Interior Design: OTS
General Contractor: RCM
City/Location: Milano
Country: Italy

The refurbishment of an early twentieth-century villa in Milan’s Certosa District repositions the structure as Club Giovanile Milano, a venue combining dining, a listening bar, and live music within a neighborhood undergoing significant transformation. Co.arch studio developed an approach that retains the building’s historical character while introducing assertive contemporary elements, including restored surfaces, exposed mechanical systems, and new architectural insertions. These interventions, paired with acoustically refined interiors and the addition of a street-facing shopfront window and external staircase, create a dynamic environment that supports both daytime hospitality and nighttime performance. The result presents a balanced model of preservation and reinvention that reinforces the villa’s presence within an evolving urban landscape.

A villa between cyberpunk and listening bar / co. Arch studio

The project begins with an acknowledgment of the villa’s layered past, including its years as a slaughterhouse and later as an abandoned property. Co.arch studio interpreted these histories as part of the building’s architectural identity, using them to guide an intervention that avoids sanitizing the structure’s character. This approach establishes the refurbishment as a continuation of the villa’s narrative rather than a break from it.

Inside, original elements such as cement tiles, stuccoes, and early lettering were restored to form the foundation of the design. These surfaces are deliberately contrasted with exposed steel ducts by Genuit, which run visibly along ceilings and walls. Their placement introduces a contemporary dimension that accentuates the irregular qualities of the villa’s historic fabric, producing an environment shaped by industrial clarity and imaginative reference.

The two principal halls within the building were developed to accommodate live music and focused listening sessions. Acoustic specialists from Labirinti Acustici calibrated the rooms to meet performance requirements, ensuring precision while maintaining atmosphere. Interiors realized by OTS support this flexibility, allowing the venue to shift naturally from restaurant and listening bar to an immersive nighttime setting.

The restoration of the villa’s exterior follows the same conceptual principles. Later additions were removed to reveal decorative frames and the historic inscription recalling its former function. Exposing these elements reestablishes a reading of the building that connects its contemporary use with its origins, presenting the façade as an archive of its lived history.

New interventions articulate the building’s current identity within the district. The introduction of a large window on the street-facing façade enhances visibility and connection with the neighborhood while holding the club’s neon sign. The external staircase, constructed in steel and perforated sheet metal, links interior spaces and extends the program toward an upper terrace used as part of the musical experience.

Positioned near the comprehensive redevelopment of La Forgiatura, the villa distinguishes itself through a language that intentionally diverges from the district’s emerging architectural cohesion. This contrast underscores the value of architectural anomalies within regenerated urban contexts. Rather than assimilating into its surroundings, the villa asserts its individuality, offering a cultural counterpoint amid ongoing transformation.

Through the combination of restoration, contemporary intervention, and programmatic adaptability, co.arch studio establishes Club Giovanile Milano as a distinctive presence in the Certosa District. The project demonstrates how architectural reuse can preserve complexity while fostering renewal, and how the reactivation of a historical structure can contribute meaningfully to the identity of a changing neighborhood.