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Architect Andrés Gutiérrez renovated a 1962 home in Mexico City’s San Ángel neighborhood for a couple who wanted to preserve its modernist character while making the interiors feel younger and more personal. The project restored features including the living room’s library and added colorful, largely Mexican-made furnishings and art.
Architect Andrés Gutiérrez has renovated a 1962 home in San Ángel, Mexico City, preserving key parts of its modernist architecture while reshaping the interiors for owners who wanted a less formal, more colorful home. The project restores the house’s library concept and combines its original woodwork and floors with Mexican-made furniture and art.
The house was designed by Mexican mid-century architect Jaime Ortiz Monasterio. The owners, a young couple who inherited the property, valued its architectural history but felt the home’s character had become too serious. They hired Gutiérrez, founder of A-G estudio, to handle the renovation and interior design. In comments to Livingetc, he said they wanted a home that felt contemporary, playful and full of color while still respecting the original structure.
The redesign uses lilac rugs and sofas, duck-egg-colored walls and pea-green upholstered chairs. Furniture throughout the home was made in Mexico, including pieces by designers and studios such as Antonio Attolini Lack, Ad Hoc, Bibi Bibi and Comité de Proyectos. Some items were customized, while Gutiérrez designed cabinets, credenzas and outdoor dining chairs. The artwork is also by Mexican creatives, with the selection drawing on color and references to the country’s pre-Hispanic past.
The architectural work was described as a restrained intervention rather than a wholesale reconstruction. Gutiérrez said the team aimed to retain as much original character as possible, particularly the floors and extensive woodwork. Some timber was replaced, and window frames and glass were renewed. The living room’s original, nearly floor-to-ceiling bookshelves had been removed before the project; the renovation restored them as part of an effort to bring back the house’s intended library character.
A Modernist Home, Made Personal
The project shows how owners can update a historically significant home without treating its original design as untouchable or erasing it. Here, the changes focus on the interiors and selected repairs, while the restoration of the bookshelves reconnects the home to an idea embedded in its original layout. The result, as described by Gutiérrez, is a balance between preservation and a new domestic identity.
Its Mexican-made furnishings and artwork also give the redesign a specific cultural grounding. Gutiérrez told Livingetc that the goal was to reflect Mexican identity without relying on folkloric clichés. Rather than recreate one historical period, the project brings together different moments in Mexican design and visual culture through furniture, art, color and form. That approach makes the owners’ request for a fresher home part of a broader design decision, not just a change in paint or decoration.
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Restoring the Home’s Library Idea
The house sits in San Ángel, an affluent Mexico City neighborhood known for colonial architecture as well as notable modernist buildings. The original residence was designed in 1962 by Jaime Ortiz Monasterio. According to Gutiérrez, it had been conceived almost as a “library to live in,” but much of that character had disappeared by the time he first saw it. The previous owners had removed the living room’s original bookshelves.
Gutiérrez told Livingetc that his practice has spent much of its 16-year history working across residences, restaurants and hotels, while exploring Mexican culture through design. For this project, that interest appears in both the sourcing of the furnishings and the art selection. The designer also described himself as a maximalist drawn to substantial, sculptural forms, a preference visible in the home’s upholstered pieces and furniture shapes.
“They wanted to take away some of its seriousness and make it feel younger, fresher, and more reflective of who they are.”
— Andrés Gutiérrez, architect and founder of A-G estudio, speaking to Livingetc
Project Details Not Reported
Livingetc’s report does not specify when the renovation was completed, how much it cost, or how long the work took. It also does not provide detailed plans, a room-by-room account of the interventions, or a full inventory of the original features that remain. The report describes the project’s design intentions and selected materials, but does not include comments from the owners about their experience living in the renovated house.
No Further Project Milestones Listed
The source report presents the home as a completed design project but does not identify upcoming construction work, a public opening, or another planned milestone. For now, the available account focuses on Gutiérrez’s renovation and design choices, including the restored library, retained woodwork and locally made furnishings. Further details about the project’s timeline or the owners’ response have not been reported.
Key Questions
Where is the renovated house?
It is in San Ángel, Mexico City, a neighborhood known for colonial buildings and modernist architecture.
Who designed the original house?
The 1962 home was designed by Mexican mid-century architect Jaime Ortiz Monasterio.
What changed in the renovation?
Architect Andrés Gutiérrez updated the interiors with colorful finishes, sculptural furniture, Mexican-made furnishings and art. The team also repaired or renewed selected elements, including some timber and the window frames and glass.
Which original feature was restored?
The project restored the living room’s nearly floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, which had been removed by previous owners. Gutiérrez said their return helped reestablish the house’s original library concept.
Was the house completely rebuilt?
The report describes the work as a relatively light intervention focused on preserving the architecture, floors and woodwork while updating selected elements. It does not provide a full construction breakdown.
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