Casa Das Artes

CASA HISTORY

Possibly the most photographed home of the Historic Quadrado, the colorful and luxuriously comfortable Casa Das Artes's (Art House) exudes tropical creativity and sensuality, a stylish homage to Trancoso’s past when the sleepy fishing village was rediscovered and adopted as home by artists and free-thinkers whose arrival during the 1970's forever changed the town's destiny.

With a wide Quadrado frontage and tree-filled garden, the casa was always one of the most coveted of Trancoso. Legendary counter-culture figure Vegetal once lived here. He gave the simple structure its current light-filled, inviting form, which makes it a perfect setting for dozens of artworks and décor from UXUA Artist In Casa residency which hosts creative talents from around the world, taking inspiration from the local atmosphere to execute one-of-a-kind pieces in Trancoso.

DESIGN

Already a special property because of its unique location 30-meters from the Saint John Baptist church and just steps from internationally renowned Casa Anderson, Casa Das Arte's true claim-to-fame is its singular atmosphere which makes a breathtaking impact the moment one steps through the wooden front door. The contrast of strong colors with organic shapes and forms is the theme throughout, executed in a highly original style dubbed by a design magazine as Technicolor Tropicália.

Walls are a striking mix of bright tropical colors (pink, blue, yellow, green, red) against soft pastels. Other wall treatments include a bedroom inspired by primitive African painted houses of Burkina Faso and curtains crafted from Indian silk saris.

Artworks throughout include stunning paintings by Joey Yu, Marcelo Cipis, Pato Rammsy, Marta Milanetti, Christian Bittencourt and Caio Pataxó (a native Pataxó painter working under tutelage of Wilbert Das), vintage tapestries from Kennedy Bahia and photography by Melanie Dunea, as well as antique German school posters.

Furnishings and lighting are one-of-a-kind pieces – many published in design magazines worldwide – contributed by talents such as Marcantonio Raimondi Malerba, Rodrigo Almeida, Lucas Simões, Mauro Zolin and Peter Kempkens.

Other furnishings come from the UXUA D.A.S. collection – unique pieces hand-made locally.

Indoor / outdoor living – the ideal tropical, Bahian lifestyle – is invited by many features: outdoor sofas and hammocks, a rustic open-air shower and a 4-person hot tub spa surrounded by fruit-bearing cacao trees in the garden, and new in 2022 an outdoor pool created by designer Wilbert Das. Al fresco dining can be enjoyed at two separate private patios or a brightly painted picnic table on the Quadrado under the shade of a towering amendoeira tree planted 35-years ago by the hippie Vegetal and his artist friends – a living breathing testament to their impact on Trancoso.