Villino Liberty in Trastevere: Verde Alpi marble in the kitchen and staircase

In Rome, in the heart of Trastevere, studio STUDIOTAMAT renovated a liberty-style villino using Verde Alpi marble for the staircase, sink, and kitchen counter, in a project completed in 2024 and published on ArchDaily in 2025.

the project: a liberty villino in the heart of Trastevere

The villino, a period building in liberty style located in one of Rome's most distinctive neighborhoods, underwent a renovation that sought to preserve the building's historic identity while integrating contemporary material insertions able to converse with the original decorations without overpowering them.

Roman liberty-style buildings, widespread especially in the early decades of the twentieth century, often feature delicate decorative elements - stuccoes, wood paneling, terrazzo floors - that call for a respectful design approach during renovation, one capable of introducing contemporary comfort without erasing the building's original character.

Verde Alpi marble in the kitchen and staircase

Verde Alpi marble, a stone characterized by an intense green tone crossed with white veining, was chosen as the project's distinctive material element, used both for the interior staircase and for the kitchen counter and sink, creating a chromatic through-line across the different spaces of the home.

Quarried primarily in the Aosta Valley region of northern Italy, Verde Alpi has long been prized in architecture and design for its striking color, which sets it apart from the more commonly used white and beige marbles found in Italian residential interiors, making it a natural choice whenever a project calls for a stronger material statement.

a dialogue between historic material and contemporary intervention

The introduction of Verde Alpi marble creates a deliberate contrast with the pre-existing liberty decorations, pairing the ornamental richness of the historic architecture with the sobriety and chromatic strength of a contemporary natural material, without resorting to period stylistic quotations.

why marble remains a protagonist even in small-scale spaces

The project shows how marble can be used effectively even in modestly sized interventions and urban residential contexts, where less characterful materials are often chosen instead: selecting a marble with a strong chromatic identity like Verde Alpi allows a single element - a staircase or a kitchen counter - to define the character of a space without needing to clad extensive surfaces.

inspiration for the use of marble in urban renovations

Villino Liberty in Trastevere offers an interesting reference for anyone tackling renovations in historic urban contexts, showing how the targeted introduction of characterful marble can elevate a project without requiring invasive interventions on the building's historic envelope.

For architects and interior designers working on listed or historically significant buildings, the example suggests a replicable strategy: concentrate the use of strongly identifiable stone materials on a few key elements - a staircase, a kitchen counter, a sink - rather than spreading them across all surfaces, achieving significant visual impact with a contained investment and a limited impact on the existing building.

Photo Credits: Serena Eller - Ellerstudio - archdaily.com