It is not easy to decorate the house of a collector. Not only do you have to make the collection the central element of the decoration but you also have to understand the collector’s particular drive and perceive the world through his eyes. Trust me, the collector’s world, regardless of whether we are talking about art, photography, vinyl or porcelain figures, is a different world from that which we live in. That’s because everything is seen through a kaleidoscopic mirror where the trivial becomes important and the insignificant acquires new meaning. In other words, it’s a magic world, the perfect antidote to the emptiness of everyday life, a flamboyant attempt to defeat death by chasing the impossible: to complete the collection, to have all versions of something, to have what no one else has.
When Brazilian architect Guilherme Torres and his colleagues were asked to decorate the house of Brazilian DJ and collector Pil Marques in São Paulo, Brazil, they initially thought it would be easy to help him organize his various collections and adapt the apartment to the likes and taste of his flat mates, artist Daniel Zanardi and DJ Adriana Recchi. But what started as a routine task ended up as an unpredictable adventure where the collection took the reins and demanded all the energy and attention of Studio Guilherme Torres. Guilherme approached the owner’s hundreds of vintage toys, vinyl records and art pieces as a curator would do, through trying to find the ideal furniture that would house the toys and taking care of the smallest detail. The whole process, as he points out, came to a climax that lasted four days, involving the whole team of architects, painters and electricians working until the wee hours in order to deliver what Guilherme considers to be one of his masterpieces.
The wide living room, which was originally painted in white, gained welcoming tones of blue and became the perfect background for the owner’s art and vintage furniture thus creating a strong base that brought together all the different elements of the house. New key pieces were added such as the sheepskin rug, the large sofa and the black shelves. Pil’s music equipment was highlighted, now facing the entrance hall. The kitchen, integrated with the living room, was painted in pink. It is amazing that even there the collection is not set aside; on the contrary there are dozens of penguins, clowns, rabbits and action figures. This particularly playful atmosphere is eminent in all areas, including the bathroom walls that are literally taken over by rare objects, ‘mined’ from all around the world.
As for Pil’s bedroom, it received special treatment since it became the ultimate shelter for his most favorite toys. And when we are talking about toys we mean all kinds of toys, from hard to find vintage treasures and Star Wars memorabilia to PEZ dispensers and contemporary pieces made by art toy companies and street artists like Toy2r, Nathan Jurevicius and Gary Baseman. One could say that this is the perfect example of a little boy’s dream house transformed into an adult pop paradise, an ideal place where all objects have the look and the color of a fairytale. That which Guilherme Torres actually achieved in this project, was to get inside the soul of the owner’s obsessions, adopt his universe and effortlessly decorate a home that seems strikingly real and impossibly beautiful at the same time. We’re pretty sure that not only Pil Marques, but the toys as well have a lot to thank him for!
