We have a soft spot for designers who approach historic renovations with a degree of creative irreverence, treating the past as a living presence robust enough to withstand contrast, surprise and even a little theatricality. Casa Fràra, a two-storey apartment in the historic centre of Ferrara renovated by Rome-based architects Punto Zero, belongs firmly to this camp. Conceived as a scenic architectural device more than a purely functional one, it threads its way through the apartment, lending the historic interior an unexpectedly cinematic quality. Brass wraps the treads and risers, lines the stairwell and extends into the living area as a suspended shelf embracing the partition wall. Punto Zero partner Arianna Nobile describes it as “a sort of golden tunnel” that emerges from the stairwell, becoming first an entrance niche and then a gleaming object before continuing into the sleeping quarters above.