Otium

Otium is envisioned as a spatial myth, a soft rebellion in which leisure becomes a ritual of self-renewal. The journey begins with The Entrance of Venus in Milan, where a classical arch opens into a dreamlike portal. Delicate florals descend like whispered invitations, and a golden key nestled in a shell hints at secrets waiting to unfold. Inside, The Birth of Venustakes place within a domed sanctuary, a sacred space where water, light, and symbolism converge. Here, Venus rises anew, surrounded by bees, ribbons, and reflected grace, embodying the power of gentle transformation. In The Golden Entanglement, fantasy becomes tangible: a floating bed framed by golden drapery and floral wallpaper blurs the line between sleep and stage, memory and performance. Gestures and filmic echoes suggest that otium is both a private escape and an intentional act. The journey culminates in Venus’s Renewal, a garden of return where stone, bloom, and poetry coexist. Among magnolia branches and quiet fountains, she reclines, not idle, but whole, having reclaimed stillness as a form of resistance, of femininity, and of creative rebirth.

This project unfolds across three levels, reimagining domestic space as a poetic ritual of rest, femininity, and myth. The journey begins with Venus’s Entrance in Milan, a compressed threshold that leads into the Birth of Venus, a circular bathing space evoking symbolic rebirth. The adjacent living area blends Milanese rationality with soft, theatrical gestures. On the first floor, Venus’s Golden Nest becomes a dream-like bedroom crowned by radial geometry and flowing drapery, while mirrored vanity spaces suggest preparation as performance. The narrative culminates in the rooftop gardens, twin areas of Venus’s Renewal, where rest, writing, and nature intertwine, completing the cycle of otium: a retreat into self, beauty, and becoming.

These sectional perspectives reveal Otium as a vertical retreat, a home designed not only for living, but for feeling. At its base, a vaulted bath and salon space echo the sensuality of Venus’s birth, framed by soft arches and sculptural light. A spiral staircase winds upward like a ribbon, linking moments of intimacy and renewal. The bedroom becomes a stage, with draped textures and curated solitude, while above, terraces bloom into gardens, spaces for writing, resting, and quiet contemplation. Across all levels, light, material, and memory intertwine to celebrate otium as a feminine act of presence.