Jean Nouvel recently signed and completed the construction of a new residential tower in São Paulo, positioned near to the the major artery Avenida Paulista and at many important cultural institutions in the Brazilian city, America's most popolous.

The Mata Atlantica tower features an all-concrete structure that rises 25 gradually inward, creating space for extensive roof gardens and balconies. There are 114 rooms and 100 private suites available inside. The gardens and the vertical wooden screens that cover the building were planted as part of a biodiversity program that aims to repopulate the indigenous flora and fauna of the Mata Atlantica rainforest.

The new building incorporates within it an old building of the Matarazzo hospital complex, originally used as a maternity ward. This low Italian-style building was renovated — under the artistic direction of Philippe Starck — to house 46 more rooms and services, including the hotel lobby and several dining options.

Here, the interiors mix uniquely Brazilian materials, such as local wood species, fine marble, tiles, fabrics, and furnishings. Guests arriving by car are guided under a canopy covered with plants.

Nouvel's tower and the existing building are then connected by a covered walkway, which gives access to the pool and Emerald Garden bar on one side, and to a verdant landscaped area and Le Jardin restaurant on the other. The pool area was designed by Starck's team and blends the styles of mid-century Brazil and the work of Antoni Gaudí to create a colorful and extravagant oasis reserved for guests. The complex houses the Sao Paulo location of the famous luxury hotel chain Rosewood.