Extracted from Venice: Step Lightly. Buy yours here.

Here’s evidence that Venetian architecture didn’t stop with the greats of the Renaissance and Baroque. In 1957 Carlo Scarpa was commissioned by Adriano Olivetti to design a showcase for his company’s now-classic typewriters and office machines. Scarpa radically opened up and reorganised the space, making use of heavy marble, brass and wood. The effect is light and airy, with a central staircase that seems to float, and the floor brought to life by coloured mosaic tiles. A display of vintage Olivetti equipment gives a sense of the showroom’s midcentury heyday.