AP 1211 by Alan Chu
A jumble of wooden boxes provide a compact storage solution in this São Paulo micro apartment by Brazilian architect Alan Chu (+ slideshow).
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_1.jpg)
In an attempt to save space, Alan Chu confined all the storage to a single wall, with an entertainment system in crate-like boxes at one end and kitchen cupboards that swing or slide open at the other.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_6.jpg)
"The idea is to use a single element to organise the space of the small apartment with an area of 36 square metres, distributed over two floors," he told Dezeen.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_4.jpg)
Red surfaces inside the pinewood units match the scarlet fridge and rug, the only colour in the otherwise monochrome and wood interior.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_12.jpg)
"The apartment is the temporary residence of a recently divorced young businessman and the decor plays with the transience of the moment: a time of changes, improvisation and reorganisation," Chu said.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_13.jpg)
White tiles laid in a brickwork pattern cover three walls of the lower floor while the fourth is taken up by floor-to-ceiling windows.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_7.jpg)
A large sofa bed beneath the double-height portion of the apartment takes up the majority of the floor space, though there is also room for a small table and chairs.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_9.jpg)
A black metal staircase spirals up to the mezzanine through another wooden box that sits opposite the bathroom, tucked in one corner and surrounded by dark walls.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_10.jpg)
Black is also used for the wall behind the bed, the only item of furniture on the glass-edged balcony apart from a chair and a wall-mounted lamp.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_11.jpg)
Dark wood covering the ceiling below is also laid on the mezzanine floor and glass panels form balustrades that help retain an open feeling.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_14.jpg)
Last year we posted a secret tea shop hidden behind rolling, swinging and sliding walls that Chu also designed.
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_8.jpg)
This isn't the smallest home we've written about. Previously we featured Renzo Piano's tiny wooden cabin at the Vitra Campus for one inhabitant and a mini prefabricated guest house that gets delivered by helicopter.
Photos are by Djan Chu.
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![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_16.gif)
![AP 1211 by Alan Chu](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2013/06/dezeen_AP-1211-by-Alan-Chu_17.gif)
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