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    Ten multi-generational homes that organise space in interesting ways

    A Mumbai apartment with its own temple and a Tokyo home for three generations and eight cats feature in this lookbook highlighting ten intergenerational households that showcase how interiors can balance privacy and community.

    Multi-generational living, in which several generations of a family cohabit under one roof, is already common practice in many parts of Asia, the Middle East, southern Europe and Africa.
    But with the growing price of housing, as well as elder and childcare, these kinds of communal living arrangements are now becoming increasingly popular around the world.
    This has prompted architects and designers to devise clever ways to divide up interiors, balancing the need for both private and communal spaces by using everything from staircases to moving partitions and planted terraces.
    Many also integrate accessible design features for their elderly inhabitants, such as wheelchair ramps and elevators.

    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing decorative ceramics, bathrooms with statement tiles and dining areas anchored by sculptural pendant lights.
    Photo is by Peter Bennetts StudioCharles House, Australia, by Austin Maynard Architects
    Pocket sliding partitions connect the rooms in this home so that its interiors can grow with the owner’s children and ultimately also accommodate their grandparents.
    Complete with a wheelchair-accessible garden, the building is one of a growing number of multi-generational houses being designed in answer to Melbourne’s housing crisis.
    “A diverse family home is often a healthy family home,” said Australian studio Austin Maynard Architects. “However, multigenerational homes also reflect the nature of our economy.”
    Find out more about Charles House ›
    Photo is by Ossip van DuivenbodeThree-Generation House, Netherlands, by BETA
    The Three-Generation House in Amsterdam was designed to resemble a “mini apartment building”, housing a young family on the lower floors and the grandparents on the top floor, which can be accessed via a private lift.
    A bright yellow staircase runs through the centre of the plan, helping to divide the open-plan interior while effectively connecting all the different levels of the home into a cohesive whole.
    Find out more about Three-Generation House ›
    Photo is by Katherine LuVikki’s Place, Australia, by Curious Practice
    Instead of doors, slim wooden blinds and raised plywood platforms help to demarcate the bedrooms in this Australian home, designed to accommodate the owner as well as her grown-up son and his family, who often come to stay for extended periods of time.
    “The play with the levels enables the architecture to act as furniture, which accommodates more or fewer guests for different occasions,” architect Warren Haasnoot of local studio Curious Practice told Dezeen.
    “Manoeuvring between spaces and levels invokes a sense that one is navigating between levels of terrain rather than moving room to room or outside to inside.”
    Find out more about Vikki’s Place ›
    Photo is by Albert Lim K SCornwall Gardens, Singapore, by Chang Architects
    Planted terraces are organised around a central pool in this family home in Singapore, providing each of the six bedrooms with natural vistas and a sense of privacy despite the busy floorplan.
    Local studio Chang Architects conceived the project as a “tropical paradise,” complete with a Koi carp pond and a waterfall to encourage the owner’s children to raise their families here once they’ve grown up.
    Find out more about Cornwall Gardens ›
    Photo is by Michael MoranChoy House, USA, by O’Neill Rose Architects
    Two brothers, their families and their mother share this residence in Flushing, Queens, which New York studio O’Neill Rose Architects describes as “three homes under one roof”.
    Designed to fuse American and Chinese ways of living in a nod to the client’s mixed heritage, the house effectively provides two separate homes for the two siblings, connected by a communal lower level that is also home to their mother and can be accessed via stairs hidden behind semi-transparent screens.
    Find out more about Choy House ›
    Photo is courtesy of NendoStairway House, Japan, by Nendo
    Three generations of the same family share this three-storey home in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district, with the more accessible ground floor given over to the grandparents and their eight pet cats.
    Japanese studio Nendo bisected the floorplan with a huge fake staircase, which provides a visual connection between the different levels while accommodating a bathroom, a playroom for the cats and a plethora of potted plants.
    Find out more about Stairway House ›
    Photo is by Javier Callejas SevillaResidence 1065, India, by Charged Voids
    Indian studio Charged Voids designed this house in Chandigarh to combine the communal focus of “Eastern spatial planning” with the “Western aesthetics” of Le Corbusier.
    Housing a family of six – including a couple, their parents and their children – the residence features private areas on the second floor and communal areas on the ground floor, which can be conjoined or separated using collapsible partitions.
    Find out more about Residence 1065 ›
    Photo is by Yao LiSong House, China, by AZL Architects
    A wheelchair ramp wraps its way around this house in the rural village of Nansong, which is inhabited by a couple in their 50s alongside three older family members, as well as occasionally their children and grandchildren.
    Like a traditional Chinese farmhouse, the building is organised around a central courtyard, with glazed openings providing views across the plan to create a sense of community and connection.
    Find out more about Song House ›
    Photo is by Matt GibsonWellington Street Mixed Use, Australia, by Matt Gibson
    Set on a narrow infill site in Melbourne, this home is constructed from irregularly stacked boxes that can be segmented to cater to different generations of the same family.
    A central atrium connects the different levels to the kitchen on the ground floor, while also functioning as a lightwell and a cooling stack for ventilation.
    Find out more about Wellington Street Mixed Use ›
    Photo is by Ishita SitwalaMumbai apartment, India, by The Act of Quad
    Indian practice The Act of Quad designed the “minimal but playful” interior of this three-generational apartment in Mumbai to consolidate the pared-back aesthetic of the owner, who is an engineer, with the more irreverent style of his cartoonist father.
    Intricate woodwork pieces were brought over from the family’s former home and refurbished to create a sense of tradition and continuity, while a small temple was tucked away behind folding doors with amber glass portholes.
    Find out more about Mumbai apartment ›
    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing decorative ceramics, bathrooms with statement tiles and dining areas anchored by sculptural pendant lights.

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    Stewart-Schafer renovates modernist house in Connecticut woods

    The founders of Brooklyn studio Stewart-Schafer have renovated a modernist home in Connecticut for themselves, using a natural colour palette to complement the surrounding woodland.

    James Veal and Christine Stucker, co-principals of Stewart-Schafer, chose to overhaul the modernist-style “architectural gem” for their family
    Stewart-Schafer principals James Veal and Christine Stucker added a personal touch to a house in EastonBuilt in 1984, the four-bedroom home sits within 18 acres of woodland in the town of Easton, a 62-mile (100-kilometre) commute from New York City.
    “The bones of the house and property were incredible,” Veal and Stucker told Dezeen. “You can tell the original owners who had this house built put a lot of love into it, no detail was spared.”
    The studio replaced some of the floor-to-ceiling windows and doors during renovation workThey had been searching for a house in Connecticut for a year, to no avail.

    But when they found this 4,700-square-foot (437-square-metre) residence on Morehouse Road it was “love at first sight” and they put in an offer almost immediately after viewing.
    The kitchen was given an update using wooden cabinetry”Sadly the second owners did not maintain it over the years and there were several things that needed to be fixed and replaced,” they added.
    An extensive renovation involved updating the family room, kitchen, and powder room, and redesigning the interiors throughout.
    A large bedroom was converted into a family room upstairsSeveral of the large glass windows and doors were replaced, and the exterior was transformed with new decking and planting after clearing the site of dead trees.
    The couple also renovated a cabin in the woods on the property, to serve as a guest house.
    Textures and colours were chosen to complement the original architectureIn both buildings, a blend of Japanese and Scandinavian decor was used to complement the existing wooden floors, ceilings and other joinery, in order to stay true to the original designs.
    Bedrooms and bathrooms were painted with earthy hues, while other rooms feature rugs, upholstery and bedding that continue the same palette.
    Rugs and upholstery continue the natural colour scheme in the bedrooms”With all the wood and views of the property we knew that inside we needed to play on those organic colours,” said the duo. “We used various textures throughout the home to balance things out.”
    The main house is split over three floors, with the majority of living space located on the central level.
    Clerestory windows bring light into the upstairs bedrooms from multiple sidesA double-height formal living room and adjacent dining area have decks on either side and connect to the separate kitchen that features white tiling and wood cabinetry.
    The primary bedroom suite on the same level leads to an indoor pool, which can be exposed to the elements by fully sliding back a floor-to-ceiling glass wall.

    Eric J Smith cantilevers Writer’s Studio over forested hillside in Connecticut

    Upstairs, a large bedroom was converted into a family room with a custom-made modular sofa.
    “Originally it was just a huge open bedroom with no real sense of direction or purpose,” said Veal and Stucker. “By adding a fireplace and custom millwork along an oversized double sided sofa this room serves so many purposes.”
    Bathrooms were painted in darker huesThis room and two further bedrooms on the top level have clerestory windows that allow natural light to enter from multiple sides.
    The lowest level accommodates a home office and a mechanical room. All of the floors are connected by both internal stair flights with open risers and a black spiral staircase outside.
    The project involved replacing the outdoor decking and planting new foilageOverall, Stewart-Schafer aimed to imbue the almost 40-year-old house with contemporary flourishes that respect and celebrate the original architecture.
    “We really feel like this house has been a great example of how good design stands the test of time,” the couple said. “We feel even in 30 more years it will still be very relevant.”
    Built in 1984, the house sits on 18 acres of woodlandThere are many examples of modernist architecture Southwest Connecticut – an affluent area where many New Yorkers have long chosen to live within easy reach of the city, but with the benefits of rural surroundings.
    Others that have been updated in the past few years include a Marcel Breuer home expanded by Toshiko Mori and a mid-century residence renovated by Joel Sanders.
    The photography is by Alice Gao.

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    Ten homes that make a feature of their corridors

    Our latest lookbook showcases 10 homes that prove that with the right use of elements such as colour, unusual flooring or feature walls, internal corridors can be much more than a necessary evil.

    Corridors are sometimes frowned upon, with contemporary architects often preferring to create open-plan layouts that avoid any potentially cramped passageways.
    But in some cases, corridors are unavoidable, and they can even become a space to enjoy in their own right.
    Below are 10 examples of the various ways in which architects and designers have sought to celebrate corridors in residential interiors.
    This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring compact bedrooms, interiors that use room dividers and homes with built-in furniture.

    Photo is by Ståle EriksenUpper Wimpole Street apartment, UK, by Jonathan Tuckey Design
    This elliptical corridor leads from the living room of this flat in a Regency-era London townhouse into an antechamber next to the master bedroom.
    Architecture studio Jonathan Tuckey Design used pastel pink for the walls and striking black and white triangular floor tiles that contrast with the palette of the adjacent room, defining it as its own space while conveying a sense of intrigue about what lies beyond.
    Find out more about this Upper Wimpole Street apartment ›
    Photo is by Jeremie WarshafskyCandy Loft, Canada, by StudioAC
    Toronto firm StudioAC gave this loft conversion apartment in a former factory a more intimate feel by creating white, arched corridors with pale Douglas fir floors from Dinesen skirted by warm inlaid LED lights.
    “The upward glow of the lighting highlights the curve overhead as you move through the extruded thresholds,” the studio said.
    Find out more about Candy Loft ›
    Photo is by Stijn BollaertWeekend House, Belgium, by Bovenbouw Architectuur
    Antwerp studio Bovenbouw Architectuur designed this bungalow to make visitors feel like they are walking up a path by opening the front door onto a curving hallway of wooden steps leading up through the house.
    “We liked the idea to see the house as a walk up the slope, a path,” practice founder Dirk Somers said. “When you walk up the ‘path’, the corridor, you look into the trees in the back of the garden.”
    Find out more about Weekend House ›
    Photo is by Nick GlimenakisRiverside Apartment, USA, by Format Architecture Office
    A translucent glass portion is set into the pale hardwood wall of this corridor in a compact New York apartment renovated by Format Architecture Office.
    The glass allows light to pass through to avoid making the space feel cramped, while the millwork contains cupboards for storage, with the corridor itself serving to create a clear distinction between different areas in the home.
    Find out more about Riverside Apartment ›
    Photo is by Pol ViladomsMontcada house, Spain, by Hiha Studio
    Slicing through this long, narrow dwelling near Barcelona renovated by Hiha Studio is a corridor defined by an inward-curving wall bearing full-height doors, designed to break up the linear layout of the space.
    To accentuate the curve, the rooms behind the doors have a slightly lower ceiling that continues beyond the corridor and cuts diagonally across the adjacent living area, carrying with it the same light-grey colour.
    Find out more about this Montcada house ›
    Photo is by Maxime BrouilletMB House, Canada, by Jean Verville Architectes
    Jean Verville Architectes filled this house in Montreal with recesses and passageways to delineate the space in a sculptural manner.
    Like nearly all the surfaces in the home, the corridor running from the front door is made of plywood, producing a minimalist, functional aesthetic while also concealing storage spaces.
    Find out more about MB House ›
    Photo is by Brian FerryBed-Stuy Townhouse, USA, by Civilian
    Brooklyn studio Civilian actually created a new corridor in this renovated historic townhouse by adding a full-height maple millwork block to divide two spaces while also providing storage.
    The small corridor section itself, which connects the kitchen to the living room, is lined with aluminium laminate and framed by parquet-styled American oak flooring.
    Find out more about Bed-Stuy Townhouse ›
    Photo is by Yannis DrakoulidisTrikoupi Apartment, Greece, by Point Supreme Architects
    The flooring plays a crucial role in creating a different kind of corridor in this Athens apartment reworked by local studio Point Supreme Architects.
    A long strip of oak parquet running perpendicular to the entrance hall creates a notional walkway from the dining area out to the balcony, acting as the clear central spine of the interior despite its open-plan layout.
    Find out more about Trikoupi Apartment ›
    Photo is by Luis Diaz DiazInner Home, Spain, by Azab
    Architecture studio Azab had only a very tight budget to refresh the interiors of this 1970s flat in Bilbao and was unable to make any major structural changes.
    Instead, it chose to liven up a long corridor through the centre with bold bubblegum-pink paint and a matching carpet, with a gabled glazed doorframe fitting into the pitched ceiling at one end.
    Find out more about Inner Home ›
    Photo is by Gonzalo ViramonteCasa Genaro, Argentina, by S_estudio
    This residence in Córdoba was designed by Argentine firm S_estudio for a family with a son who uses a wheelchair, so contains numerous elements of accessible design.
    Among them is a wide, central entrance hallway that extends to provide direct access to every room in the house, illuminated by generous skylights.
    Find out more about Casa Genaro ›
    This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring compact bedrooms, interiors that use room dividers and homes with built-in furniture.

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    Nwankpa Design creates compact, colourful sanctuary for working mom in LA

    California studio Nwankpa Design has transformed a room in a family house into a colourful, private space for a mother to work, breastfeed and exercise.

    The project, called Cumberland Hideaway, was designed by local firm Nwankpa Design for a creative director and mother of two. Totalling 200 square feet (18.5 square metres), the slender, rectangular room is located within a suburban, ranch-style home in Los Angeles.
    Cumberland Hideaway was designed by local firm Nwankpa DesignThe space formerly held a storage area, and before that, it served as a garage.
    The client desired a “sanctuary” where she could work, nurse and ride a fitness bike, in addition to having storage space. The design needed to be as efficient as possible because of the room’s limited size.
    “The programme packs a lot into the small footprint,” the studio said.

    The room was designed for a mother to breastfeed, work and exerciseThe team opted for blocks of colour, streamlined cabinetry and contemporary decor. The combined elements create variety without making the space feel too crowded.
    A skylight and slit windows bring in daylight while also offering privacy. Extra illumination is provided by globe-shaped Carina Maxi pendants from Nuevo Living, a Restoration Hardware chandelier and sconces by Brooklyn studio In Common With.
    Nwankpa Design added colourful accents to the spaceWalls are sheathed in a light-grey wallpaper from Fayce. Bush-hammered porcelain tile was used for the flooring.
    Furnishings include a wooden treadmill desk, a Blu Dot table and a peach sofa from Interior Define. A bold, striped rug by Ralph Lauren helps delineate the lounge area.
    Furnishings include a wooden work deskCustom medium-density fibreboard cabinets – in shades of pale pink, baby blue and white – were staggered to fit a Peloton exercise bike. Brass was selected for knobs and handles. A mini fridge was incorporated into cabinetry along one wall.
    A range of potted plants helps to round out the space.

    The Wing Williamsburg is a black and beige co-working space

    Studio founder Susan Nwankpa Gillespie said the project brief resonated with her, being a working mom herself.
    “It’s about all of the things we need, without compromising what we want,” she said.
    “We need a space to decompress – somewhere we can focus and get work done, whatever kind of work that is,” she added. “We also want it to feel special, to uplift us.”
    Nwankpa Design scattered potted plants around the roomOther spaces for working moms include Big and Tiny, a co-working facility with on-site childcare that features wooden decor and a blue-and-pink colour palette, and a variety of outposts for The Wing, a women-focused, co-working company.
    The photography is by Madeline Tolle.
    Project credits:
    Design studio: Nwankpa DesignTeam: Susan Nwankpa Gillespie (lead designer), Lillian Nguyen (designer)

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    Jennifer Morden creates “aspirational” mid-century house with sinister dungeon for Fresh

    Production designer Jennifer Morden created a mid-century house to reflect the personality of the flamboyant and misogynistic antagonist in comedy-thriller film Fresh.

    Morden and her team built two individual sets in a studio to represent the house for the film, which was directed by Mimi Cave and shot in Canada’s British Columbia.
    Fresh features a mid-century house that belongs to cannibal SteveThe sets were designed to portray the main floor and basement of a lavish mid-century house that forms a secluded lair for Steve – a seemingly-charming man who seduces women into dating him, after which he traps them in his basement and reveals that he is actually a psychopathic butcher of human meat.
    “We wanted to make as much as we could so we could customise it,” Morden told Dezeen in a video call from Canada, explaining the decision not to use a real house for the project.
    The dining room is positioned at the highest level on the main floorFresh tells the story of Steve’s relationship with Noa, who he briefly dates and subsequently lures to his house. The characters are played by actors Sebastian Stan and Daisy Edgar-Jones respectively.

    “The choice to go with a mid-century style house was partly because right now it’s really popular,” said Morden.
    “People love mid-century houses and they’ve had a big resurgence in modern design. It was also about Steve looking aspirational.”
    Dark wooden cabinetry was included in the kitchenOn-screen, the rooms on the house’s main floor are presented at subtly different levels from each other in what Morden called a “hierarchy of spaces”.
    A dining room is seen on the highest level, a kitchen slightly lower down, and then a living room and finally Steve’s bedroom.
    Plush furniture such as 1970s Camaleonda sofas by Mario Bellini and Eames-like armchairs decorated these spaces and were set against harsher accents including dark wooden cabinetry and built-in concrete seating.
    A curved basement informed by fallopian tubes holds women captiveThe other set representing the basement featured a concrete floating staircase dug out of rock, which leads to dungeon-like, teak-lined hallways that descend to cells with sunken beds where women are held captive.
    Steve’s operating room forms the basement’s lowest level, where he harvests the imprisoned women’s meat and body parts.
    “Wherever we see Steve in relation to his victims, he’s always at a higher level to them,” explained the production designer.
    Steve’s operating room is located at the bottom of the basementSteve’s house intends to reflect his complex and powerful persona, which quickly transforms from outwardly normal to sinister as the drama unfolds, according to Morden.
    “I was like, okay, everything we do needs to involve body parts, in some capacity. Every piece of artwork, every piece of furniture and the way the hallways are designed.”
    Imagery of body parts is repeated throughout the filmTo illustrate this idea, the production designer and her team placed a Michel Ducaroy “body chair” in Steve’s bedroom and created faux herringbone flooring from pieces of painted, hand-laid plywood, which Morden said she “really wanted to feel like ribs”.
    The curved, cave-like basement was informed by fallopian tubes and designed to be a grand auditorium for Steve – a “crazy” idea that Morden pitched in her interview for the project.
    An abstract painting conceals items belonging to Steve’s victimsAn abstract painting was placed on the living room wall, which actually included hair, teeth and nails on closer inspection. In an early scene, upon arriving at the house before she is drugged and trapped, Noa studies the artwork.
    It is later revealed that Steve hides personal items belonging to the captured women behind this painting in boxy cubby holes that mirror the basement cells below.
    Wooden and concrete accents feature on the main floor and in the basement”Mimi wanted to use the piece of artwork as a little Easter egg [a term for hidden messages in a film] for later because it’s the first thing Noa sees and she’s drawn towards it,” reflected Morden.
    “The idea was that if we can draw everything back to body parts then we can start to create the story’s subliminal messaging and foreshadow what’s to come as much as we can.”

    Seven houses that play a starring role in films including Parasite and The Power of the Dog

    The production designer said that it was important to visually connect the main floor to the basement, which was partly achieved by adding wooden elements to the mainly concrete basement and concrete elements to the largely wooden main floor.
    Eventually, Cave and cinematographer Pawel Pogorzelski had the idea to add vivid and humorous sunset murals to the walls of the women’s cells.
    The decision to incorporate colourful carpets became natural after this, linking the basement to Steve’s opulent quarters above, according to Morden.
    Kitschy holiday-like murals were added to the cells to reflect Steve’s obnoxious nature”The idea was, what if we made the basement this space that Steve thought he was gifting to these people?” she explained, referencing Steve’s obnoxious and flamboyant character.
    “What if we use the idea that this misogynistic and unaware male was like, ‘I’m going to create a room that’s going to feel so nice for my victims?’ What would he put in there?”
    Each of the women’s rooms has a different coloured carpetCinematographically, Fresh also has a warm and fleshy colour palette of reds and oranges throughout, which nods to its graphic storyline.
    “I think for me, the biggest thing is just telling people to find all the Easter eggs in the film. There’s so much repeated imagery, especially around body parts,” concluded Morden.
    Other recent film and TV productions that feature architecturally-centred set design include Oscar-winning The Power of the Dog and BBC drama The Girl Before.
    The images are courtesy of Jennifer Morden.
    Project credits:
    Director: Mimi CaveWriter: Lauryn KahnProduction designer: Jennifer MordenSet decorator: Stephanie AjmeriaSet designers: Peter Stratford and Amanda De CastroCinematographer: Pawel Pogorzelski

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    Tristan Auer designs Blade Runner-inspired bathroom for Axor

    Promotion: drawing on the aesthetic of the film Blade Runner, architect Tristan Auer has designed a neon-lit bathroom concept for Axor to suit an imagined male client.

    Auer created the concept as part of the German brand’s Distinctive project, which tasks some of the world’s leading architects with creating highly individual bathrooms.
    Auer was free to design whatever he wanted, but had his imagination sparked by a suggestion in the brief that the bathroom sit in a high-rise apartment in Hong Kong.
    Tristan Auer’s bathroom concept was partly inspired by the aesthetic of Blade Runner”You know Blade Runner from Ridley Scott? Hong Kong is like that — something that is building on top of itself. Different layers,” he said.
    “You have the crowd on the street level, and then, as you elevate, it’s more and more futuristic. It’s why I combine old antiques pieces with very modern textures.”

    From this starting point, Auer developed a dark bathroom that combines reflective stainless steel elements with neon lighting and a mix of different travertine stones.
    He wanted to give the bathroom a masculine feel with ’80s touchesAxor’s Edge faucets, designed by Jean-Marie Massaud, further fuelled his worldbuilding around the design, as he says their diamond-cut pyramidal pattern reminds him of an 80s icon, the ST Dupont lighter.
    “I don’t smoke, but I like to touch. So that sets the stage — Dupont, those colors, those ambiances,” he said, explaining that, in combination with the “masculine” travertine, it helped him to build a picture of his imagined client.
    “It’s for a man. Definitely selfish. The guy is only thinking about himself. He likes to collect. He’s a hedonist.”
    The pattern on the Axor Edge faucets fuelled Auer’s imaginationAs well as the Axor Edge washbasin faucet and freestanding bath faucet, Auer’s bathroom features the Axor ShowerHeaven and Axor Edge thermostat in the shower and Philippe Starck’s ultramodern Axor Universal rectangular accessories.
    They all have a polished gold optic finish, which adds to the bold and moodily space-age look of the bathroom.
    “Axor Edge is great, and not only because Jean-Marie is a good friend,” said Auer. “I would have liked to have designed it before him!”
    The Axor Edge tapware is by Jean-Marie MassaudAuer describes himself as an “interior and emotion” architect, because of how he reads and interprets his clients’ wishes, drawing inspiration from them rather than imposing his own style.
    He started his career with French interior designer and architect Christian Liaigre, who worked wholly bespoke at the time, and says he learned to design everything down to the door handle.
    Auer mixed layers of modern elements and antique pieces in the bathroom concept”I know the artisans,” he said. “I know the process. And individualisation is very interesting because, for me, that’s luxury, to have something made for you.”
    Individualisation of living spaces is the focus of Axor’s Distinctive project, for which Auer and fellow architects Sarah Poniatowski and Hadi Teherani have all designed highly personalised bathrooms.
    Axor sees individualisation as a growing trend, with people seeking more personal expressions of style following decades of globalisation and standardisation.
    To view more of Axor’s products, visit its website.
    Partnership content
    This article was written by Dezeen for Axor as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

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    Attitude of “permanent renewal” drives retail success says Colette co-founder Sarah Andelman in Liganova talk

    Promotion: Sarah Andelman, co-founder of Parisian concept store Colette, has discussed the unexpected approaches needed to succeed in the future retail landscape in a talk hosted by Dezeen and brand retail experts Liganova during Milan design week.

    Andelman was in conversation with Dezeen’s chief content officer Benedict Hobson at brand and retail experience company Liganova’s Salone Club, a live event held in a lounge overlooking the rooftops of Milan.
    The event explored the topic of the future of retail and how brands can create relevant and meaningful experiences in stores through curation and collaboration, with Andelman drawing on her decades of experience helming Colette alongside her mother, Colette Roussaux.
    The talk included Mathias Ullrich, Ben Hobson and Sarah AndelmanThe Paris boutique – opened in 1997 and widely considered one of the most influential stores in the world – brought together fashion, streetwear and beauty products. The space also included a gallery, bookshop, cafe and “water bar” serving more than 100 varieties of bottled water.
    Mother and daughter kept things fresh by changing the windows and displays every week, and Andelman said that it was the fact that they would always “renew ourselves” that meant people would come back to see what’s new.

    “We would always push and try to introduce things we haven’t seen yet, and this permanent renewal,” she said. “It was a mix of brands and mix of events. I think this energy helped create what Colette was.”
    Andelman is the co-founder of Parisian concept store ColetteColette closed in late 2017 when it was almost at the height of its popularity and Andelman says going out on a high when the time felt right was “the best decision we took”.
    The next year she founded her consulting agency, Just an Idea, which has worked with brands including Valentino and Nike to produce unique and tailored retail experiences.
    Andelman considers collaboration one of the keys to current and future retail success but says it has become harder than ever to make an impression in the space.
    Sarah Andelman was in conversation with Ben Hobson at Liganova’s Salone Club at Milan design week 2022″Now there are so many unexpected collaborations that you’re not surprised anymore,” she said. “It’s really everywhere.”
    “We had so many collaborations of brands with artists, brands with brands, I think now maybe we’ll talk to writers, to architects, to hospitality, to find new ways of developing a new format of collaboration to bring a new dimension to the classic collaboration,” she continued.
    Curation is also key according to Andelman, who urges curators to embrace their idiosyncracies without fear. It is something she and Roussaux were known for at Colette, which presented high-end labels alongside undiscovered emerging designers.
    Andelman spoke in front of an audience of Liganova partners, clients and friends”For a good curator I think you need knowledge, you need to know what exists, you need to be super curious, to have to go to multiple trade shows, showrooms, anything,” she said. “You hear, you read, you follow information, you really just follow your instinct, to not try to duplicate something you have seen somewhere else.”
    In the future, she believes the real world and metaverse will come to intersect in the retail space, requiring continuity of approach from brands.
    At the same time, there will continue to be a place for bricks-and-mortar stores, especially “retail experiences” that capture the senses and are almost museum-like in their approach.
    The live talk took place in a rooftop lounge looking out over Milan”I think bricks and mortar are here to stay if there is this extra touch to make it the opposite of the internet, this human service, maybe a drink, this extra service that you won’t find online,” she said.
    “I think it’s fantastic for brands like Jacquemus to have a concept like its pop-up at Selfridges,” she said. “It’s a focus on one bag. You feel the water, you hear the sound.”
    “In an experience, I think you need all of these: the sound, the smell, the touch and the fact that it’s not a system that they will duplicate in Tokyo, New York, but they really take the time to design something different for each market,” she continued. “The challenge is to keep it short and to renew and do something completely different next time.”
    To learn more about Liganova, visit its website.
    Milan design week 2022
    Salone Club took place on 8 June as part of Milan design week 2022. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.
    Partnership content
    This article was written by Dezeen for Liganova as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

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    Tala Fustok Studio layers different metals to create calm ambience in Manhattan loft apartment

    Tala Fustok Studio used different mineral textures and materials to soften the hard edges of this industrial apartment in New York’s West Village.

    Designed for a single female occupant, the apartment is located on a five-block stretch on Bleecker Street within a restored late 1800s building that was originally designed to house the Schumacher and Ettlinger lithographic printing business.
    A corten steel staircase connects two floorsThe 348-square-metre three-bedroom apartment is split over two floors connected by a corten steel staircase.
    The client asked London designers Tala Fustok Studio to create a calm, contemporary space using artisanal and mineral materials inspired by the city.
    Oversized windows let in natural sunlightThe designers reorganised the space to emphasise the apartment’s tall ceilings, oversized windows and natural sunlight.

    To create better clarity in the space, the staircase that connects the two floors was also designed to separate the kitchen from the living room.
    This monolithic piece is wrapped in a patchwork of welded corten steel produced by Brooklyn-based metal fabricator Gabrielle Shelton.

    Tala Fustok designs Ninja Theory office to entice employees back into workplace

    The studio also added a maple and glass wall that houses a Patagonia stone workspace and a display cabinet that showcases the client’s vase and vintage crockery collection.
    Patagonia stone was also used in the kitchen, while the apartment’s walls were rendered in limestone and textured glass was chosen to dapple the natural light, creating a serene and calm ambience.
    A display cabinet holds vintage crockeryIt was important to the studio and the client to work with local artisans like Shelton. Other locally-made pieces include the liquid metal bespoke bathtub and living area walls by New York-based atelier Courbet.
    The reclaimed walnut flooring was sourced locally and an array of different metals in the kitchen, such as the blackened steel cabinets and brass cooker hood, were all handcrafted by local artisans.
    The kitchen has decoratove Patagonia stoneThe London studio previously created an office with a blood-red bar and all-blue cinema room for a BAFTA-winning game developer in Cambridge.
    The photography is by Isabel Parra.

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