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    Ten living spaces that are punctuated by saturated primary colours

    Our latest lookbook compiles residential living rooms that have been given an air of playfulness through their use of the three primary colours.

    In design, the primary colours are yellow, blue and red. They usually appear in this context as strong cobalt blues, vivid sunshine yellows and intense fire-engine reds.
    This trio of colours is prevalent throughout design history and can be seen in paintings by Dutch artist Piet Mondrian and suspended mobiles by American sculptor Alexander Calder.
    They are often used when designing products for children due to the visually stimulating nature of their bright, dense hues.
    In interior design, they have a similarly invigorating effect, whether applied directly to structural elements such as walls and columns or found in soft furnishings and accessories.

    They primary colours help to bring energy into living areas both when used in isolation and when appearing in tandem with one another.
    This is the latest in our lookbook series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring four-poster beds, split-level living areas and colourful bathrooms.
    Photo by Paolo FuscoRetroscena apartment, Italy, by La Macchina Studio
    Vibrant pops of blue, yellow and red are set against a neutral backdrop of white walls and terrazzo stone floors in the living room of this mid-century one-bedroom apartment in Rome.
    The space represents the distilled interior scheme devised by Italian architecture practice La Macchina Studio that characterises the apartment, which is also home to floor-to-ceiling citrus-toned curtains and bright blue doorways.
    Find out more about Retroscena ›
    Photo by José HeviaHouse in Sant Antoni de Vilamajor, Spain, by Arquitectura-G
    A monochromatic red colour scheme dominates both the exterior and interior of this rural house near Barcelona designed by Spanish design studio Arquitectura-G.
    The split-level living space features a rhythm of striking red-painted columns and ceiling-height cupboard doors combined with rosy clay tiles.
    Find out more about House in Sant Antoni de Vilamajor ›
    Photo by Will PryceRed House, UK, by David Kohn Architects
    Red House in Dorset, England, was given its name by David Kohn Architects in reference to its red brick facade, however, splashes of the colour also appear throughout its eclectic interior.
    Primary coloured furnishings – including a blue rug and footstool, red wall hanging and yellow upholstered armchair – are dotted around the living space, offset by white-painted cinderblock walls and warm wooden accents.
    Find out more about Red House ›
    Photo by The Fishy ProjectOut of the Blue, India, by The Act of Quad
    Renovated by Mumbai-based studio The Act of Quad, this apartment in the Indian city of Thane is defined by its consistent use of cobalt blue in an otherwise neutral interior.
    Soothing splashes of the colour appear in pieces of bespoke furniture – including hemispherical and spherical inclusions on light fittings and tables – and line the inside of a wall-mounted drinks cabinet.
    Find out more about Out of the Blue ›
    Photo by Jesper WestblomApartment renovation, Sweden, by Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor
    The full trio of primary colours is used across this apartment in Stockholm by local practice Westblom Krasse Arkitektkontor.
    Blue, yellow and red are seen in both full saturation and muted hues on walls, ceilings, soft furnishings and furniture, creating a colourful yet cohesive interior.
    Find out more about apartment renovation ›
    Photo is by José HeviaApartment renovation, Spain, by Arquitectura-G
    Spanish studio Arquitectura-G used a colour palette governed by shades of yellow in its refurbishment of this apartment in Barcelona.
    The living space contains a sunny yellow modular sofa and matching kitchenette, with the spaces united by a backdrop of small golden wall tiles, a honey-coloured wooden floor and white plasterwork.
    Find out more about this apartment renovation ›
    Photo by Johanna LinkFàng Sōng, Germany, by Crossboundaries
    Beijing-based architecture practice Crossboundaries reconfigured the interior of a houseboat moored in Berlin, which features modular furniture and storage solutions all finished in either red or yellow in reference to the Chinese imperial colours.
    An adaptable living area onboard contains a lemon-yellow sofa that folds away to support a double bed, as well as a cantilevered desk integrated into a wall panel that can be stowed away when not in use.
    Find out more about Fàng Sōng ›
    Photo by Yiannis Hadjiaslanis and Point SupremeIlioupoli Apartment, Greece, by Point Supreme
    Graphic primary-coloured details are scattered around this 56-square-metre subterranean apartment in Athens renovated by local architecture studio Point Supreme.
    The rough concrete walls and ceilings of the small living area are contrasted by red items – including a bench and window panes – as well as a trio of deep blue flags suspended in the entryway.
    Find out more about Ilioupoli Apartment ›
    Photo by Mattias HamrénFunction Walls, Sweden, by Lookofsky Architecture
    This apartment in Stockholm, which was renovated by local studio Lookofsky Architecture, is designed around a multifunctional wall that snakes through the interior.
    In the living area, the zesty yellow structure contains a sofa snuggled inside an extruded frame, accompanied by integrated shelving and matching golden upholstery.
    Find out more about Function Walls ›
    Photo by Prue RuscoePolychrome House, Australia, by Amber Road and Lymesmith
    Australian design studio Amber Road worked with colour consultants Lymesmith on this house in suburban Sydney, which is charactertised by its excessive use of colour.
    The aptly named Polychrome House is finished in a kaleidoscopic spectrum of colours, including in its living room where a wall mural of abstract shapes featuring red, blue and yellow is echoed by red and blue seating.
    Find out more about Polychrome House ›
    This is the latest in our lookbook series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring four-poster beds, split-level living areas and colourful bathrooms.

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    Emma Martí celebrates Menorca's architectural heritage in Hevresac Hotel

    Spanish architect Emma Martí has converted an 18th-century townhouse on the Balearic island of Menorca into the intimate eight-bedroom Hevresac Hotel, taking over all of its five floors from basement to attic.

    The building, which originally belonged to a local merchant and privateer, is set in the historic centre of Mahón – a former trade hub that still bears traces of French and English culture after spending many years under colonial rule.
    Emma Martí has converted a five-storey townhouse into the Hevresac HotelHevresac owners Ignasi Truyol and Stephanie Mahé brought Martí on board for the renovation in part because she was an old friend, who they thought could be trusted to conserve and enhance the spirit and character of the building.
    Martí’s aim for the project was to fill the building with light and life while preserving its wealth of existing architectural elements, from wooden beams and mosaic flooring to stucco walls and staircases.
    “The aim of the project was to create a fresh and inspiring hotel that values the beauty of the existing architecture,” said the hotel’s owners.

    Original details such as parquet floors were retained throughoutHevresac’s original floors, covered variously in wooden parquet and encaustic cement tiles, were carefully preserved.
    In areas where it was not possible to retain the original elements, Martí chose a new design language using modern equivalents of these original materials, including micro-cement.
    Hevresac Hotel has only eight guest roomsThe renovation process revealed both the stucco on the walls and the original paintwork on the beams, uncovering part of the building’s hidden history.
    The original wrought iron columns in the living room are now a celebrated feature. Less noticeable but equally interesting is the Masonic symbolism on the wrought-iron railing of the marble staircase at the entrance.
    Solid timber was used to frame private bathrooms in each of the bedroomsMartí also wanted to preserve the original room structure of the townhouse.
    To allow for this, she added private bathrooms within each of the existing bedrooms using a lightweight timber framing system made of solid Flanders pine, while three-ply spruce boards form partitions, headboards and wardrobes in each bedroom.
    “Martí’s intention is for the new materials to coexist and harmonise with the originals, providing a new language, lightness and contemporaneity,” the owners said.

    Artchimboldi Menorca is a work retreat inside an abandoned girls’ school

    A new staircase – also utilising spruce ply – now coexists with the original staircase, providing an alternative route through the Hevresac Hotel.
    The material is key to the contemporary language of the new insertions, which sit clearly differentiated alongside layers of the building’s past.
    “I like to work with an honest and frank attitude towards the island’s architectural heritage,” Martí told Dezeen. “I wanted it to be clear what our intervention was, not to highlight it but to highlight the value of what existed in the building.”
    Three-ply spruce boards form partitions and wardrobes in each of the bedroomsTo fill the spaces with natural light, several skylights were added on the upper floor, with one above the main stairwell as well as three new openings in the facade.
    In the basement, the vaulted ceiling made of local marés stone required an intervention to lighten the space.
    Martí’s response was to remove a bay of the existing vault and install a new, more comfortable staircase to link the ground floor with the basement and flood the space with light.
    Martí also added a new spruce ply staircaseHevresac’s choice of furnishings reflects Mahón’s cosmopolitan history, including an eclectic assembly of antique, vintage and contemporary pieces from all over Europe.
    Among them are Nanimarquina rugs, Achille Castiglioni lights and some of Marcel Breuer’s Cesca chairs, as well as items from Menorcan antique dealers including Alcolea & Kraus and Antics Antigüedades.
    “It’s a kind of synergy,” the owners said. “Together, the components project a warm, creative and personal composition, which is more than the algebraical sum of those individual pieces.”
    The hotel has a small terraceMartí, who founded her self-titled studio Emma Martí Arquitectura in Menorca in 2013, has since completed a number of projects on the island.
    Among them is a work retreat inside an abandoned girls’ school, with design-driven spaces where businesses can host meetings or team-building sessions.
    The photography is by Pol Viladoms

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    Studio Plenty designs Light Years diner in Byron Bay to feel like “a warm hug”

    Asian diner chain Light Years has renovated its restaurant in the Australian surf town of Byron Bay, with interiors conceived by local practice Studio Plenty in collaboration with home-grown artists and designers.

    The team behind Light Years wanted its flagship eatery to mirror the playful visual identity established across its three other venues on Australia’s East Coast while refining and elevating their aesthetic.
    Studio Plenty has renovated the Light Years diner in Byron Bay”We were asked to reimagine the Byron Bay restaurant, taking cues from its sister diners but with greater restraint in composition,” Studio Plenty founder Will Rathgeber told Dezeen.
    “We were looking to achieve something refined without letting go of the relaxed culture behind the brand, with satisfying colours and patterns, and playful shapes and materials.”
    Terracotta tiles were used to finish the walls and floorsSoft corners and gently curving walls help to create a sense of intimacy, according to Rathgeber, while the restaurant’s colour palette of soft pink and terracotta tones “embraces you like a warm hug”.

    Underpinning the playful feel of the eatery is a careful focus on the practicalities, with arched openings and material thresholds helping to define three distinct spaces – the main dining room, a curved bar with counter seating and a private dining area for larger groups.
    Arched openings separate the restaurant’s different dining areasThe restaurant’s material palette incorporates handmade terracotta tiles with a rustic brushed finish and a rusty colour that is also picked up in the restaurant’s floors and the Fibonacci terrazzo bar counter.
    In the main dining room, the ceiling was treated with an acoustic spray to absorb sound while contributing to the earthy, vernacular look of the diner thanks to its bumpy texture.
    Rattan acoustic panels cover the ceiling near the entranceSince the acoustic spray does not adhere to pipes, Studio Plenty specified a motorbike exhaust wrap for the pipes to achieve a harmonious ceiling plane.
    In the bar area, ceilings are clad in rattan acoustic panels by local product designer and interior stylist Sarah Ellison, who also worked with Studio Plenty to design the restaurant’s custom furniture including the chunky tables and bistro-style chairs.

    Eight earthy kitchens where terracotta tiles add warmth and tactility

    Artist collective Studio of the Sun created two colourful murals for the restaurant, with one featuring playful illustrations laser-printed onto a section of glossy white tiles.
    “The client was committed to a locally focussed project, hence approaching Studio Plenty to design the restaurant and Sarah Ellison and Studio of the Sun to collaborate,” said Rathgeber.
    A curved terrazzo bar provides counter seatingRathgeber founded his Byron Bay practice in 2020 after cutting his teeth working for architecture firms Woods Bagot and Jackson Clements Burrows in Melbourne.
    “We believe happiness is achieved through sensible design, not excess,” he explained of his studio’s ethos. “We have an appetite for rational design and an obsession with functionalism.”
    The private dining area is defined by a Studio of the Sun artworkElsewhere in Byron Bay’s bustling bar and restaurant scene, Australian studio Pattern has designed the interiors for an eatery serving South America-style small plates and cocktails.
    Its patchy grey surfaces and concrete fixtures were designed to reflect the “raw beauty” of late-night eateries in Mexico.
    The photography is by Jessie Prince.

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    Prada opens Milanese-informed cafe at Harrods

    Fashion house Prada has opened the Prada Caffè in luxury department store Harrods, which has an interior that is blanketed in the brand’s signature green hue and mirrors one of Milan’s oldest patisseries.

    Located at the corner of Hans Road in London, the Prada Caffè is accessed via a mint green latticed storefront that complements Harrods’s Edwardian baroque terracotta facade.
    Prada Caffè is located in HarrodsThe interior of the pop-up cafe draws on the interior of Pasticceria Marchesi, a Milanese patisserie that opened in 1824, which has similar pale-green interiors that are paired with green velvet-upholstered soft furnishings.
    At Prada Caffè, the walls, ceilings and furniture – including booth seating, plush armchairs and architectural elements – were hued in a minty green referred to as Prada green, a colour that has become synonymous with the brand.
    It was decorated in Prada’s signature green colourA large marble countertop, decorated with textural, pebbled panelling at its base, is located at the entrance to the cafe and used to display Prada-branded patisseries that are presented like individual pieces of jewellery.

    The floors of the space were clad in black and white-checkered floor tiles in a nod to the floors of the Prada boutique located in Milan’s Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II.
    The interior referenced Prada stores and a Milanese patisserieFloral reliefs and mouldings cover the walls and ceilings of the cafe, which the brand explained aims to evoke the look of Prada stores worldwide.
    A mezzanine level, supported by green columns, is decorated with bowed balustrades and used as an elevated seating area overlooking the marble-wrapped patisserie counter.

    Ola Jachymiak Studio brightens Beam cafe in London with orange hues

    At the rear of the cafe, a secluded room continues the interior scheme. Here, green velvet booth seating surrounds the perimeter of the space beneath decorative floral relief walls.
    Tableware was selected specifically for the cafe and ranges from blue-hued Japanese porcelain, informed by ancient Celadon pottery and decorated with contrasting black lines, to blown-glass crystalware.
    A checkered floor runs through the cafeTo accompany the blown glassware and duck egg blue porcelain, silverware was engraved with Prada branding and features handle ends that are shaped like the brand’s triangular logo.
    The cafe will remain at Harrods until January 2024.
    Furniture was upholstered in velvetDuring Milan Fashion Week, Prada presented its Autumn Winter 2023 collection in the Deposito of the Fondazione Prada, which featured a moving and retractable ceiling.
    Elsewhere in London, Ola Jachymiak Studio brightened a cafe in Notting Hill incorporating terracotta-tile floors and tangerine-hued walls.
    The photography is courtesy of Prada.

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    Worrell Yeung renovates cast-iron New York building for arts organisation

    Architecture studio Worrell Yeung has renovated a historic cast-iron building in Soho for an arts organisation called Canal Projects, which hosts exhibitions “in an unmistakably New York City space”.

    Sat between Soho and Tribeca, the five-storey landmark was built in 1900 as a manufacturing centre, featuring a decorative white facade, double-hung windows and an external fire escape all typical of the neighbourhood.
    Worrell Yeung renovated the lower two floors of a landmarked building to create a home for Canal ProjectsIts street and basement levels were renovated by Worrell Yeung to create a home for Canal Projects, a non-profit arts organisation that hosts exhibitions, talks, performances, readings and screenings for the community.
    The studio was careful to retain as much of the building’s character as possible, highlighting the existing features like original masonry and steam radiators, and restoring them where necessary.
    Patinated bronze panels line the new entry thresholdVisitors arrive via a new entry threshold on Canal Street, where patinated bronze panels line the tall walls in a space intended to offer a moment of pause.

    Up a short flight of steps is the main gallery space – a large, open and flexible room that can be programmed in accordance with the organisation’s needs.
    The main gallery space is surrounded by windows and features historic details”We designed the foundation to be a series of spaces that would compress and expand, collapse and unfold and move between dark and light,” said Worrell Yeung co-founder Jejon Yeung.
    Surrounded by 14 large windows on two sides and boasting ceilings over 13 feet (four metres) tall, this room is light-filled and spacious.
    A staircase leads down to more space at cellar levelNew white oak floors complement the industrial details, including five cast iron columns and five wide flange steel columns that were exposed and restored.
    “Similarly to providing artists with a distinctive platform, we wanted viewers to experience art in an unmistakably New York City space,” said Max Worrell, Worrell Yeung’s other co-founder.
    A library area is formed by pivoting floor-to-ceiling shelves”Passers-by will glimpse exhibitions from the street through the window walls along Canal and Wooster Streets, and visitors on the interior can see artwork with the city context visible in the background,” Worrell said.
    Also on the ground-floor level are private offices for the curators and a bright orange public restroom.
    The dark cellar space is used for film screeningsNext to a freestanding reception desk by artist Zachary Tuabe, a staircase leads down to the basement level, which has a much smaller occupiable footprint.
    Darker and more enclosed, the cellar space features original brickwork, masonry and timber ceiling joists, and provides a very different exhibition space that is suitable for film screenings.
    A bright orange kitchen is tucked into an alcoveLight from the steel sidewalk grates illuminates one end of the space, where a library area is created by floor-to-ceiling shelving that pivots as required.
    A pantry area is hidden in an alcove behind a set of stable doors and is coloured entirely bright orange to match the upstairs restroom.

    Worrell Yeung contrasts wood pillars and grey marble in Chelsea Loft

    “We wanted artists to confront a venue that provides sufficient neutrality for their work, but that is also distinctly undivorceable from the Soho Cast Iron District,” said Yeung.
    “This is a building typology unique to New York City, and a richly layered context within which to exhibit.”
    A public restroom on the upper level matches the kitchenCanal Projects opened to the public in September 2022, with an exhibition titled Pray organised by artistic director and senior curator Summer Guthery.
    The show featured works by Bangkok and New York-based artist Korakrit Arunanondchai, and American artist and filmmaker Alex Gvojic.
    The building is located on the corner of Canal and Wooster Street, between Soho and TribecaWorrell Yeung was founded in 2015, and has worked on a variety of projects in and around New York.
    The studio recently completed a timber-clad lake house with cantilevered roof planes in Connecticut, while past endeavours have included a Hamptons renovation, a Chelsea loft apartment, and the penthouse in the Dumbo Clocktower Building.
    The photography is by Naho Kubota.
    Project credits:
    Architecture and interior design: Worrell YeungWorrell Yeung project team: Max Worrell, founder and principal; Jejon Yeung, founder and principal; Beatriz de Uña Bóveda, project manager; Yunchao Le, project designerStructural engineer: Silman (Geoff Smith, Nick Lancellotti)Lighting designer: Lighting Workshop (Doug Russell, Steven Espinoza)MEP engineer: Jack Green Associates (Larry Green)Expediter/code consultant: Anzalone Architecture (James Anzalone)Contractor: Hugo Construction (Hugo Cheng, Kong Leong)

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    Eight earthy kitchens where terracotta tiles add warmth and tactility

    For this lookbook, we’ve collated eight kitchens from Dezeen’s archive that use terracotta tiling to bring a sense of warmth into the functional space.

    Terracotta – meaning baked earth in Italian – technically refers to any object made from fired clay. But most commonly, the term is used to describe pottery made from a porous type of earthenware clay that is high in iron oxides, giving it a rusty reddish brown colour.
    Unlike ceramic stoneware or porcelain, terracotta is fired at lower temperatures so it does not vitrify – meaning the clay retains a coarse, organic texture and isn’t waterproof unless it is glazed.
    Used as a backsplash or flooring, this can bring some much-needed colour and texture into the kitchen while helping to create a connection to the outdoors.
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring accent walls, bookshelves and sunken baths.

    Photo by Prue RuscoeBudge Over Dover, Australia, by YSG
    Australian studio YSG used narrow terracotta tiles to “draw the outside in” to this house in Sydney, spilling from the floor of the garden patio onto the adjacent kitchen and dining area, which can be opened up to the exterior using sliding glass doors.
    The rough clay is paired with shiny aubergine-coloured plaster and travertine in the sunken living room beyond, creating a contrast between raw and polished surfaces.
    Find out more about Budge Over Dover ›
    Photo by Mariell Lind HansenFarley Farmhouse, UK, by Emil Eve Architects
    When Emil Eve Architects added a gabled kitchen to a farmhouse in Wiltshire, the British studio set out to mirror the material palette of the existing home by adding arrowhead terracotta tiles to the extension’s exterior.
    Inside, matching rectangular tiles were laid in a herringbone pattern on the floor while a row of clay pendant lights hang from the wooden roof beams.
    Find out more about Farley Farmhouse ›
    Photo by Denilson MachadoHygge Studio, Brazil, by Melina Romano
    Terracotta flooring and tan brick walls lend a “rustic charm” to this São Paulo apartment, designed by Brazilian designer Melina Romano.
    The tiles spill out across the entire home including the bedroom and lounge, which is framed by a screen made of decorative perforated cobogó blocks.
    Find out more about Hygge Studio ›
    Photo by José HeviaLas 3 Marías, Spain, by Bajet Giramé and Nicolas Burckhardt
    All-over terracotta flooring was one of the ways that Spanish studio Bajet Giramé found to connect the kitchen of this 1960s holiday home to its generous backyard, alongside the addition of generous arched openings and perforated steel doors.
    “We ended up working on the whole plot, treating both house and garden as a playful matrix of varied interconnected rooms,” the studio told Dezeen.
    Find out more about Las 3 Marías ›
    Photo by Adrià GoulaLa Odette, Spain, CRÜ
    To create a bright, open floor plan inside this apartment in a Barcelona housing block that dates back to 1877, Spanish studio CRÜ tore down most of the internal petition walls
    Instead, the kitchen is now delineated by a statement wall clad in terracotta tiles – left over from the flooring and turned back-to-front to reveal their ribbed underside.
    Find out more about La Odette ›

    West Bend House, Australia, by Brave New Eco
    Three kinds of tiling provide textural interest inside the kitchen of this “forever home” in Melbourne, with sections of rustic terracotta contrasted against a backsplash of teal-glazed ceramics.
    Corrugated tiles were also folded around the pendant light above the island that illuminates the work area, courtesy of Australian lighting brand Southdrawn.
    Find out more about West Bend House ›
    Photo by Conrad BrownComo Taperia, Canada, by Ste Marie
    Both the seating area and the open kitchen of this Spanish tapas bar in Vancouver were lined with terracotta, in a nod to the brick chimneys of Barcelona’s industrial Poble Sec power station.
    Other Catalan references can be found in the restaurant’s cobalt blue accents – informed by the paintings of Joan Miró – and various abstract details that nod to the work of architect Antoni Gaudí.
    Find out more about Como Taperia ›
    Photo by German SáizConde Duque apartment, Spain, by Sierra + De La Higuera
    Different spaces in this open-plan apartment in Madrid were defined by traditional Moroccan zellige tiles, with glossy yellow and green glazes and organic handcrafted surfaces.
    To balance out these flashier surfaces, terracotta was used to ground the kitchen and dining area, paired with plain white walls and custom timber joinery.
    Find out more about Conde Duque apartment ›
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring accent walls, bookshelves and sunken baths.

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    Norm Architects devises understated HQ for children's lifestyle brand Liewood

    A refined palette of oak, plaster and steel defines the interior of the Liewood headquarters in Copenhagen, Denmark, designed by local practice Norm Architects.

    The pared-back 2,200-square-metre office was conceived to give prominence to Liewood’s colourful, Scandi-style children’s clothes, toys and homeware.
    Norm Architects has completed Liewood’s Copenhagen headquarters”With the ambition to create a comfortable space with a somewhat understated character, we worked to let the space obtain its significance through the thoughtful use of tactile elements such as textured plaster walls and contrasting elements like oakwood and steel,” explained Sofie Bak, an architect at the practice.
    Staff enter the five-floor office via an airy light-filled lobby that is anchored by a rounded counter, roughly washed with sandy-beige plaster.
    Plaster podiums provide display space on the first floorCone-shaped pendant lights are strung along the ceiling while oversized stone tiles are laid across the floor, helping to “emphasise the grandeur” of the space.

    A pre-existing staircase curves up to the first floor, which accommodates a showroom. This part of the building formerly served as a production hall, with a vast scale that could easily feel empty and unwelcoming, according to Norm Architects.
    At mealtimes, staff can gather in The ParlourTo counter this, the practice constructed what it describes as a “warm wooden core” – a house-shaped oakwood volume with built-in shelves for showcasing Liewood’s products.
    Large, plaster-coated display plinths are dotted across the rest of the room. At the back is a short flight of wide, wooden stairs where staff can sit and chat throughout the day.

    Norm Architects creates warm yet minimalist interior for Y9 sailing yacht

    More products can also be presented here on bespoke podiums that, thanks to cut-outs at their base, are able to slot onto the steps.
    The building’s first floor also contains The Parlour – a kitchen and dining area where Liewood employees can enjoy meals together. It features a large travertine table, a series of plump grey sofas and graphic art pieces by the Danish designer Sara Martinsen.
    Traditional work areas can be found across the rest of the HQWork areas throughout the rest of the HQ are furnished with practical desks and storage units that match the off-white walls, while meeting rooms are fronted with panes of glass to foster a sense of openness.
    As the building’s original staircase didn’t extend all the way to the fifth floor, Norm Architects installed a spiralling set of white-steel steps.
    These grant access to a space the practice refers to as The Apartment: a secondary showroom designed to have a more intimate, homely feel.
    The top floor accommodates The Apartment, a more intimate showroomElsewhere, Norm Architects recently took its minimalist aesthetic off-shore when designing the interiors of the Y9 sailing yacht, decked out with supple suede furnishings and wood-panelled surfaces.
    The photography is by Jonas Bjerre Poulsen of Norm Architects.

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    BoND uses pink scaffolding at New York “embassy” for fashion brand PatBo

    Architecture studio BoND has designed the New York headquarters for Brazilian fashion brand PatBo, which features pink scaffolding and rugs based on drawings by Roberto Burle Marx.

    The office and showroom for PatBo occupies a 7,000-square-foot (650-square-metre) loft, which spans the entire seventh floor of a historic building on Fifth Avenue.
    The PatBo showroom is located in a light-filled loft in New York’s Flatiron DistrictAs the brand’s global headquarters, this space serves multiple purposes: showcasing the brand’s apparel; providing office space for staff; hosting buyers and events.
    “Our biggest challenge was to divide the space according to the showroom’s new program while keeping its loft-like openness,” said BoND co-founder Noam Dvir.
    To divide the open space, BoND used pink-painted scaffolding that doubles as clothing railsTo create partitions that double as displays, the designers chose scaffolding elements on which clothing can be hung and shelving can be installed.

    “They are so readily available, so New York in their character, and very easy to adapt to different conditions,” said Daniel Rauchwerger, BoND’s other co-founder. “Moreover, they’re inexpensive and have a younger, fresher feel that works so well with the spirit of a PatBo studio.”
    The showroom also serves as an office space for the PatBo teamScaffolding has been used in a variety of retail environments for its versatility and ease of installation, including a bright yellow Calvin Klein store transformed by Raf Simons and Sterling Ruby, and a boutique for Wardrobe NYC designed by Jordana Maisie.
    Painted pale pink in the PatBo showroom, the industrial scaffolding takes on a more feminine appearance, which sets the tone for the rest of the showroom.
    Feminine touches like pleated pendant lights align with the brand’s aestheticCurved couches, pleated pendant lamps and tambour panelling all add to the soft aesthetic and further align with PatBo’s brand expression.
    Circular fitting rooms surrounded by curtains allow clients to try on the colourful clothing in the main showrooom.
    Private offices feature tambour panelling and a mix of furnitureA second showroom area for hosting buyer appointments and casting calls includes minimal clothing racks with brass rails and oak frames.
    This space is closed off from the reception, but still visible through large glass panels that allow light from the exterior windows to pass through.
    The historic building overlooks Fifth AvenuePrivate offices along the far side of the loft also feature glass doors for the same purpose, and add to the feeling of openness and transparency throughout the showroom.
    “It’s not meant to be too precious or delicate, but rather a place where a group of creative professionals can feel encouraged to move things around and make it their own,” said Dvir.

    Raf Simons and Sterling Ruby transform Calvin Klein store with yellow scaffolding

    Atop the wooden floors are rugs based on the drawings of Brazilian modernist and landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx, designed in collaboration with São Paulo-based Punto e Filo.
    Colourful furniture and potted plants also contribute to the Brazilian vibe in the space, and complement PatBo’s vibrant garments.
    Rugs throughout the space are based on the drawings of Brazilian modernist Roberto Burle MarxAt the back of the showroom is a bar area, featuring a pink stone counter with rounded corners, and a sink placed within a curved niche that has mirrored sides.
    “This is a space that combines elements of office, retail, and hospitality,” said Rauchwerger. “With that, it is able to serve as a real embassy for PatBo as a brand.”
    A bar area with pink stone counters is used for hosting eventsRauchwerger and Dvir, both former journalists, founded BoND in 2019 after working as architects at OMA, WeWork and more.
    Their studio’s previous projects have included the renovation of a dark Chelsea apartment into a light-filled home.
    The photography is by Blaine Davis.
    Project credits:
    Project team: Daniel Rauchwerger, Noam Dvir, Liza Tedeschi

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