Paris apartments

Subterms

    Latest story

    138 Shares173 Views

    Uchronia founder designs own home as “love letter to French craft”

    by

    Glossy walls, ruched curtains and oversized flower-shaped cushions characterise this eclectic 1970s-style Paris apartment, designed and owned by Uchronia founder Julien Sebban.

    Called Univers Uchronia, the apartment is in the city’s 18th arrondissement, close to the Uchronia office – a Parisian architecture and interiors studio known for its bold application of shape, colour and reflective surfaces.
    Julien Sebban designed Univers Uchronia as his homeSebban designed the dwelling as his home, which he shares with his husband and Maison Royère artistic director Jonathan Wray.
    The Uchronia founder created the apartment as an extension of his studio – “it’s truly a manifesto of our universe,” he told Dezeen.
    Colourful interiors anchor the apartmentSebban worked with local studio Atelier Roma to create all the walls and ceilings, which are either lacquered and glossy or made of matte pigmented concrete, respectively reflecting or absorbing light throughout the day.

    Finished in hues ranging from cloud-like pale blue to lemony yellow, the walls and ceilings complement the poured-in-place resin floor that spans the apartment and features a bold motif that “waves and moves in relation to the architecture”.
    A metallic island features in the open-plan kitchenThe home is anchored by a predominantly pink living space, which includes Uchronia-designed pieces such as low-slung interlocking coffee tables made from walnut burl and orange resin.
    Translucent and gathered pink curtains were paired with a geometric vintage bookshelf and a blocky but soft sofa finished in purple and orange.
    A bespoke onyx dining table was created for the home”The apartment is very colourful with ’60s and ’70s inspirations and a mix of our contemporary pieces and vintage objects,” said Sebban.
    In the open-plan kitchen and dining room, a veiny Van Gogh onyx table was positioned next to a metallic kitchen island, illuminated by a blobby seaweed-shaped table lamp.
    Ornamental jellyfish decorate the home officeA portion of the otherwise orange wall was clad with tiny, mirrored tiles. Reflected in the gleaming ceiling, the tiles have the same effect as a shimmering disco ball.
    Opposite the dining area is Sebban and Wray’s home office, characterised by a bright orange, built-in day bed topped with silk flower-like cushions and a wave-shaped backrest.
    The dwelling’s bathrooms follow a similar designAbove the bed, ornamental jellyfish were suspended like planets against a constellation of gold stars, which decorate the ombre orange and yellow wall that nods to the colour-drenched interior of the city’s Cafe Nuances – also designed by Uchronia.
    The dwelling’s bathrooms follow a similar design. Accents include dusty pink alcoves and ceramic tiles depicting underwater scenes, as well as a lily pad-shaped rug and a mirror resembling a cluster of clouds.

    Ten self-designed homes that reflect the unique styles of their owners

    “The apartment defines the codes we have tried to develop at Uchronia over the last four years,” concluded Sebban.
    “It’s a play on colours, textures and materials, and a love letter to French craft.”
    Univers Uchronia is “a love letter to French craft”Uchronia was named emerging interior designer of the year at the Dezeen Awards 2023. The studio previously renovated a Haussmann-era apartment for a pair of jewellery designers with multifaceted furniture pieces created to mirror the appearance of precious stones.
    Various architects have designed their own homes, such as John Pawson, who created this minimalist second home in the Cotswolds in the UK.
    The photography is by Félix Dol Maillot. 

    Read more: More

    More stories

    • 125 Shares129 Views

      in Rooms

      Paris duplex by Johanna Amatoury references architecture of Greek islands

      by

      Harnessing soft whites and gently curving plaster forms, interior designer Johanna Amatoury has brought a holiday-house feel to this apartment in the peaceful Paris suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine.

      The duplex belongs to a couple who work in real estate and their three young children – a globetrotting family with a particular love for the Greek islands.
      Interior designer Johanna Amatoury has renovated a Paris duplexAmatoury designed their apartment as a homage to the region’s vernacular architecture.
      “Because of their love for this part of the world, we arrived in this apartment and imagined a holiday house feeling, using warm and textural materials – very unlike typical Parisian apartments,” she told Dezeen.
      “We worked with mineral materials, textures and raw colours in the apartment to provide depth and achieve the desired ambience.”

      Curving plaster-covered surfaces feature heavily in the entrywayThe design of the home was also shaped by its layout, arranged over the ground and first floors of a large 1980s building that opens onto a small garden.
      This encouraged Amatoury to model the apartment on a single-family house.
      The design draws on the vernacular architecture of the Greek islands”We wanted to imagine it as a house, to create a more outside-in atmosphere, increasing all the size of the windows,” she said.
      “The apartment is on the garden level, so my guideline was to open as much as possible to the outside and the planting there.”
      Violetta marble tables anchor the living roomThe apartment’s whole floorplan was reworked in order to create a living room, dining room and kitchen that all look onto the gardens outside.
      The staircase was relocated to a more logical location close to the entrance, while upstairs the space was completely reconfigured to create four bedroom suites.
      Artworks reflect the Grecian theme of the interiorAs a homage to Greek island architecture, Amatoury used Roman plaster to soften the forms within the apartment, particularly in the entrance hall.
      “We used warm, textural materials including lots of softly curving and tactile plaster finishes that give the space a sculptural look,” she said.
      “Roman plaster is a very ancient technique that has a mineral appearance with a smooth, soft and slightly glossy finish, which catches the eye and dresses the wall through classic mineral colours while also embracing brighter nuances.”

      Six renovated Parisian apartments in historical Haussmann-era buildings

      In the kitchen, smoked walnut timber cabinetry is paired with splashbacks and worktops made of Navona travertine.
      Set in an otherwise open-plan space, the area is enclosed in glazed panels.
      “The family entertains a lot and cooks a lot, both the parents and the children,” Amatoury said. “As a result, it was necessary to be able to close off the kitchen while maintaining this visual openness.”
      The kitchen is enclosed by glazed partitionsMuch like a window, the glazed panels feature curved grilles and are set on an oak base that creates a visual link with the built-in oak banquette upholstered in white boucle wool.
      “We create a lot of benches because they’re so practical, incorporating storage chests, but most importantly for their cosy appeal,” Amatoury said. “Benches introduce a mix of fabrics and through these fabrics, the space becomes more welcoming.”
      Amatoury fashioned an oak seating banquette for the dining area For Amatoury, the furniture edit was a balancing act between creating a “harmonious yet eclectic atmosphere” that blends sophistication and comfort.
      Taking a central role is the curving sofa in the living room, which is upholstered in off-white linen and paired with monolithic Violetta marble tables.
      A staircase leads up to the second floor”Its design not only provided a focal point but also added a touch of elegance and softness to the space,” she said.
      “The curving shape offered a sense of flow and organic grace, enhancing the room’s visual appeal. The choice of off-white linen contributed to a serene ambience here, promoting a feeling of openness and lightness.”
      The upper level houses four bedroom suitesAmatoury, who has worked on several residential and commercial interiors across Paris, says she was tasked with the project after the owners admired a home she had completed for friends of theirs.
      “They liked our work and especially the warmth we bring to our projects, almost like a cocoon,” she said.
      Other residential interiors in the French capital that have recently been featured on Dezeen include a loft apartment in a former textile workshop and a Haussmann-era flat that was restored to its “former glory”.
      The photography is by Pierce Scourfield.

      Read more: More

    • 138 Shares159 Views

      in Rooms

      Hauvette & Madani restores Haussmann-era Paris apartment to its “former glory”

      by

      Local design studio Hauvette & Madani drew on the Haussmannian history of this Paris apartment to create a gallery-like interior for its occupant’s vast art collection.

      Located in the city’s historic Triangle d’Or, the dwelling previously featured minimalist marble surfaces and gilding leftover from a recent renovation.
      Hauvette & Madani “re-appropriated” the apartment, originally designed as part of Georges-Eugène Haussmann’s famed reconstruction of the French capital during the mid-19th century, to reflect its architectural past.
      Hauvette & Madani added cornices and mouldings to the apartment to reflect the dwelling’s Haussmannian roots”The challenge was to completely revamp the apartment, which had just been refurbished,” said studio co-founder Samantha Hauvette, who designed the dwelling with Lucas Madani.
      “We carried out meticulous research to find the right motifs and decorations to restore the place to its former glory and Haussmannian charm,” she told Dezeen.

      The living room features various artworksThe designers recreated delicate white cornices and mouldings – hallmarks of Haussmannian design – within the apartment, which had been previously stripped of these details.
      This created a considered but neutral backdrop for the resident’s eclectic collection of artwork and a curated selection of furniture “mixing eras and styles,” according to Hauvette and Madani.
      Sarah Crowner designed a bold fireplace for the dining spaceVisitors enter at a small round vestibule clad in straw marquetry – a “common thread” that also features on a pair of curved sofas and a sleek coffee table as well as sliding doors, the main bedroom’s headboard and the dining table.
      The light-filled living room is characterised by sculptural furniture and art pieces, including rounded vintage armchairs finished in a dark green hue and metallic base.
      An amorphous ceiling work by Austrian artist Erwin Wurm was suspended above the sofas, while a deep blue painting by Swiss practitioner Miriam Cahn adds a bold hue to the room.
      “It’s a real living space, where the homeowner shares a lot with her artist and designer friends,” said the designers. “All the pieces have a strong identity.”
      The kitchen balances traditional elements with more alternative detailsFor the dining room, American artist Sarah Crowner created a striking turquoise fireplace, which was clad in a blocky mosaic of geometric tiles and positioned alongside a burnt orange vintage egg-shaped chair.
      “We wanted to take the codes of classicism and break free from them,” explained Hauvette and Madani, who aimed to balance traditional interior details with more contemporary colourful touches.
      A blocky drinks bar was finished in the same design as the kitchen tableContinuing this theme, the designers sandwiched a bright green stove between more subtle, light pink cabinets in the kitchen, which includes a patterned feature wall.
      Blocks of light-coloured timber were stacked by French furniture maker Hervé van der Straeten to create a singular lumpy leg for the kitchen table as well as the base of a drinks bar elsewhere in the apartment.

      Wood Ribbon apartment in Paris features an undulating timber wall

      Hauvette and Madani also constructed an in-house sauna for the home, finished in dark wooden slats and tucked behind a bespoke green-hued daybed, made by the designers themselves.
      “We have a strong belief that everything that you love independently will work perfectly once put together,” said Madani, who highlighted the power of trusting your instincts when curating eclectic interiors.
      Hauvette & Madani also added a home saunaSummarising the overall look and feel of the apartment, the pair declared, “it’s Paris Haussmannian style, with a hint of craziness!”
      Hauvette & Madani is not the first studio to renovate a traditional Parisian apartment with contemporary touches.
      Local studio Uchronia recently filled a home for jewellery designers with multifaceted furniture pieces crafted to mirror the appearance of precious stones. The studio also previously added a wine-red kitchen to an otherwise neutral flat in the French capital.
      The photography is by François Coquerel. 

      Read more: More

    • 113 Shares119 Views

      in Rooms

      Isabelle Heilmann converts Parisian textile workshop into loft apartment

      by

      Interior designer Isabelle Heilmann has used glazing and level changes to turn a former textile workshop in Paris into an open-plan apartment with a dedicated home office.

      The owners of the property on Rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud asked Heilmann’s studio Epicène to rationalise the interior and create a space for home working while maintaining the apartment’s quirky layout.
      Isabelle Heilmann has completed the Timbaud apartmentThe existing loft featured several impractical and dilapidated spaces including a cramped bedroom and three mezzanines with low ceilings that were once used for storing rolls of fabric.
      Heilmann removed some of the existing structures and introduced changes in floor height to delineate the new spaces while adding internal windows that retain a visual connection between the rooms.
      A raised platform houses the home office”Using differences in level and glass partitions allows you to demarcate the different living spaces while allowing light to circulate,” the designer told Dezeen.

      “Now, from the moment you enter, you have a global vision of the volume of the apartment,” she added. “It’s a way to have a very open plan without the disadvantages of the loft.”
      A bright green door in the dining space conceals a WCThe partitions enclosing the existing bedroom were removed and a platform built in their place now contains a home office housing two workstations and a wall of library shelving.
      Two of the mezzanines were also demolished, leaving just one beside the entrance that was transformed into a room for gaming and accommodating overnight guests.
      Throughout the interior, Heilmann sought to preserve the spirit of the old workshop that had attracted the owners to this space. The raised platform recalls the height changes of the old mezzanines, while geometric sculptural elements evoke the original layout.
      The kitchen and living room are separated by a glass partition”The partitions and interlocking shapes of the old workshop have been simplified, but we find this play of asymmetrical cubes in the shape of the headboard or the glass partition between bedroom and living room,” she explained.
      “The industrial spirit is also suggested in the choice of lighting fixtures or the sobriety of the bathroom tiling.”
      Examples of the recurring geometric motif include a series of cubic volumes containing cupboards and storage niches on either side of the steps leading up to the platform.

      Uchronia conceives Haussmann-era Paris apartment as “chromatic jewellery box”

      An asymmetric window creates a bold feature that connects the living room with the new bedroom, where a stepped headboard creates shelf space for books, paintings and objects.
      The kitchen is located opposite the office platform and features a simple L-shaped layout that slots in underneath the mezzanine and windows.
      A swing in the living room capitalises on the apartment’s tall ceilingsThe cupboard units have birch plywood doors and a marbled Corian worktop that complements the minimal, industrial look of the interior.
      A full-height glass-and-steel wall that was part of the original workshop was carefully preserved and now separates the living room on one side from the kitchen and dining area on the other.
      A door in the central glass partition leads into the living area, where a swing suspended from the ceiling makes the most of the room’s height.
      The owners wanted a blank canvas for showcasing their collection of vintage objects, so walls and floors throughout the apartment are painted white to provide a muted, minimal backdrop.
      A green bedspread catches the eye in the bedroomThe scheme also aims to create a playful, relaxed and creative atmosphere evocative of 1960s modernism, with classic pieces such as Achille Castiglioni’s Snoopy lamp and an Enzo Mari print providing pops of colour.
      In the bedroom, a yellow-painted door and green bedspread catch the eye, while a bright green door in the dining space conceals a WC with a sink set against punchy pink cement tiles.
      The bedroom features a large dressing area with cupboards made from birch plywood, which is housed in a space previously occupied by a bathroom.
      Curved tiles by Pop Corn clad the sinkThe main bathroom offers a playful take on the geometric theme used elsewhere in the apartment, with its geometric sink clad in rounded tiles from French firm Pop Corn.
      Isabelle Heilmann studied at the École Boulle in Paris before founding her agency Epicène in 2018. The studio designs public and residential spaces that combine a minimalistic sensibility with a love of colour and characterful statement pieces.
      Other Parisian home interiors that have recently been featured on Dezeen include an apartment with a wine-red kitchen and another that was designed to resemble a “chromatic jewellery box”.
      The photography is by BCDF studio.

      Read more: More

    • 113 Shares169 Views

      in Rooms

      Uchronia conceives Haussmann-era Paris apartment as “chromatic jewellery box”

      by

      Multifaceted furniture pieces crafted to mirror the appearance of precious stones feature in this opulent Parisian apartment, which was renovated by local studio Uchronia for a pair of jewellery designers.

      Located on Paris’s Avenue Montaigne, the one-storey apartment is housed within a building designed as part of Georges-Eugène Haussmann’s famed reconstruction of the French capital during the mid-19th century.
      Uchronia renovated a Haussmann-era apartment in ParisUchronia maintained the apartment’s original boiserie, mouldings, parquet flooring and tall ceilings, which are hallmarks of Haussmann-era architecture.
      This quintessentially Parisian backdrop was updated to include bright and textured furnishings designed to mimic pieces of jewellery.
      The dining room features a modular resin table”The space had great bones – a classical Haussmanian layout,” said Uchronia founder and architect Julien Sebban. “That being said, it felt cold, pretentious and beige.”

      “For a change, we avoided structural work and focussed on the decoration,” he told Dezeen.
      A trapezoid lacquered cabinet was positioned in the living roomCreated as a home for two jewellery designers, the apartment features an amorphous resin table in the dining room that is divided into seven modular parts and patterned with a motif informed by the green gemstone malachite.
      “The table’s custom-designed, beaten steel legs echo the principle of claws holding a solitaire diamond to its ring,” explained Sebban.
      Coloured light refracts from a squat stained-glass chairMulticoloured light refracts from a squat stained-glass chair in the sizeable living room, which features a trapezoid lacquered cabinet and curvy jewel-like furniture finished in vivid hues and contrasting textures.
      Uchronia suspended a milky blue Murano glass chandelier overhead and wrapped the room’s floor-to-ceiling windows in sheer ombre curtains.
      Uchronia created a bespoke bed frame for the apartment”The walls echo the curtains and are also treated – and this is a technical feat – in gradations of colour,” the architect said.
      Tucked into an alcove, towering silvery shelves display a selection of ornaments and were designed to give the impression of an open jewellery box.
      “If the apartment’s shapes are reminiscent of the jewellery world, its materials and colours are also borrowed from it,” Sebban said.

      Six renovated Parisian apartments in historical Haussmann-era buildings

      In the single bedroom, the studio took cues from the undulating striations of onyx when creating a bespoke bed frame, finished in plush upholstery to blend in with the room’s patterned carpet while alabaster lamps were positioned atop its two posts.
      Elsewhere in the room, Uchronia paired a dramatically carved Ettore Sottsass dressing table in book-matched marquetry with an egg-shaped chair defined by gleaming red plastic and “space-age lines”.
      An Ettore Sottsass dressing table was also included in the bedroom”It’s very hard to pick a favourite place in this flat because each space has its own identity and colour,” Sebban said. “But if there’s one thing I really love about this apartment, it’s the vitrail that leads to the kitchen.”
      The curving window was an existing feature of the apartment, which the studio customised with candy-coloured glass panes.
      “It creates a place of passage that is quite timeless, like a little sanctuary,” said the architect.
      Coloured glass appears throughout the apartmentColoured glass is a motif that appears throughout the apartment, including the asymmetrical pastel-hued wine and cocktail glasses that look like precious stones.
      “Playful and contradicting combinations of colour, organic and geometric lines and a rich combination of textiles and glass come together to form a chromatic jewellery box filled with gems,” said Sebban. “Every detail has been thought out, polished and cut.”
      Asymmetrical pastel-hued glasses looks like precious stonesElsewhere in Paris, French architect Sophie Dries previously renovated a Haussmann-era apartment for clients who are “really into colour”, while Hauvette & Madani added a sumptuous wine-red kitchen to a dwelling in the city’s République area.
      The photography is by Félix Dol Maillot. 

      Read more: More

    • 138 Shares199 Views

      in Rooms

      Wine-red kitchen forms centrepiece of Paris apartment by Hauvette & Madani

      by

      Interior design studio Hauvette & Madani has made a sumptuous wine-red kitchen the focus of this otherwise neutral apartment in Paris.

      The Republique apartment is set within a typical Haussmann-era building in the French capital’s 11th arrondissement and belongs to a family with two children.
      From the outset of the renovation, the clients called for the home to orbit around a “spectacular” atmospheric kitchen.
      A wine-red kitchen is the focal point of the Republique apartmentHauvette & Madani responded by using a striking colour scheme, rendering all of the kitchen’s linoleum cabinets and its curved breakfast island in a wine-red colour. The same shade was also applied to the ceiling but in a glossy lacquer.
      “We wanted a dark but joyful colour and ended up deciding on this substantial red,” founders Samantha Hauvette and Lucas Madani told Dezeen. “We also love the fact [the colour’s] eccentricity matches the rest of the calm and soft apartment.”

      Spaces are connected by travertine-framed doorwaysLustrous decorative elements such as an aged-mirror splashback and brass light were also introduced to the space, and a support column was wrapped in stainless steel.
      The room’s original wooden flooring was overlaid with travertine and Emperador marble tiling.
      Shades of beige can be seen throughout the living roomA travertine-framed doorway looks through to the adjacent living room, where walls were painted an oatmeal beige, matching a bean-shaped velvet sofa from French brand Pierre Augustin Rose.
      A pair of wriggly-edged oak coffee tables and a terracotta-coloured edition of French designer Pierre Paulin’s Ribbon chair were also used to dress the space.

      Six renovated Parisian apartments in historical Haussmann-era buildings

      The dining room next door is centred by an oval travertine table, around which steel-framed leather seats have been arranged. At the rear of the room is a tall white dresser inset with oak-lined niches where ornaments or artworks can be displayed.
      A Murano glass chandelier hangs from the ceiling, where ornate moulding was carefully preserved.
      The nearby dining room has a travertine table at its centreThe project also saw Hauvette & Madani refresh the parents’ bedroom, which now features 1930s-style lighting and a bespoke oak headboard. This winds around the back of the room and has arched cut-outs that accommodate bedside tables.
      A walnut-wood vanity cabinet and vintage Italian mirror were also fitted in its en-suite bathroom.
      A bespoke oak headboard was installed in the parents’ bedroomOften considered the heart of the home, the kitchen is where architects and designers enjoy getting playful with colour.
      Other examples include the kitchen inside Sans-Arc Studio’s Plaster Fun House, where a pink terrazzo breakfast island contrasts duck egg-blue cabinetry.
      And the kitchen within this Belgian apartment by Carmine Van Der Linden and Thomas Geldof features birch wood cupboards that were stained a murky hue of green.
      The photography is by Yannick Labrousse. 

      Read more: More

    • 100 Shares169 Views

      in Rooms

      Six renovated Parisian apartments in historical Haussmann-era buildings

      by

      Period details are mixed with contemporary interventions inside these renovated apartments in Paris, built in the mid-19th century during Georges-Eugène Haussmann’s reconstruction of the French capital.

      In his role as the prefect of the Seine département under Napoleon III, Baron Haussmann was responsible for creating the network of boulevards that still define the city’s urban landscape today.
      The homogenous apartment buildings flanking these boulevards were designed to strict guidelines, all made from cream-coloured stone with a steep four-sided mansard roof and no more than six storeys.
      Although Haussmann was less prescriptive about the building’s interiors, they generally feature high ceilings and parquet floors alongside elaborate mouldings and boiserie.
      Read on for six examples of how architects and interior designers have brought these apartments into the 21st century, including a book lover’s loft and two flats combined to form a family home in the Marais.

      This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring bedrooms with minimalist interiors, concrete kitchens and marble-lined bathrooms.
      Photo by Salem MostefaouiWood Ribbon apartment by Toledano + Architects
      Original details such as parquet floors and ornate ceiling plasterwork were retained in the renovation of this apartment, which had been left largely untouched since the end of the 19th century.
      But local studio Toledano + Architects tore down several partition walls to create a more open floorplan, traversed by a snaking plywood wall that roughly divides the apartment into three zones while providing tactical storage in the living room and kitchen.
      “I really wanted to enhance this dichotomy between ancient and contemporary,” founder Gabrielle Toledano told Dezeen. “It’s very relevant in a city like Paris where both are in a constant dialogue.”
      Find out more about Wood Ribbon apartment ›
      Photo by Giulio GhirardiApartment Canal Saint Martin by Rodolphe Parente
      French interior designer Rodolphe Parente made only a few minor architectural interventions when overhauling this apartment in Canal Saint-Martin, exposing long sealed-off doorways and creating a hybrid dining room and kitchen.
      Instead, he modernised the apartment by contrasting original details such as mouldings with unexpected contemporary details, colours and the “radical” art collection of the owner.
      In the bedroom, a vivid purple rug clashes with caramel-coloured walls while in the living room, period wall panelling highlights the modernity of the sofa and the glossy coffee table.
      Find out more about Apartment Canal Saint Martin ›
      Photo by Olivier Martin GambierApartment XIV by Studio Razavi
      With several partition walls removed, French office Studio Razavi created a new layout for this apartment by slotting a multi-faceted furniture block made from wood-fibre panels into the remaining gaps.
      Its staggered profile creates sightlines between the different areas of the house while framing some of the building’s original Hausmann-style ceiling mouldings.
      Painted in a muted slate grey, the furniture block performs a different function in every room – acting as a storage cabinet in the kitchen, a TV mount in the living room and a desk in the study.
      Find out more about Apartment XIV ›
      Photo by Stephan JulliardMarais apartment by Sophie Dries
      Two flats become one 100-square-metre residence in this renovation project that French architect Sophie Dries completed in trendy Marais for a family of four.
      Period details were painted in simple white, providing a contrast with new additions such as the Hans J Wegner chairs and the dyed linen curtains in the living room
      “The Haussmannian style was refined and pared down, in order to introduce minimal lines better suited to a modern family,” Dries explained.
      Find out more about Marais apartment ›

      Enter the Diamond by Atelier 37.2
      An additional bathroom is housed inside the three-metre-high birchwood volume at the centre of this residence in the French capital, designed by local studio Atelier 37.2.
      The sharp lines of the diamond-shaped structure contrast with the apartment’s ornate ceiling mouldings and white-painted walls.
      “This tension generates a fictional potential that plays with the imagination of the inhabitants,” said the studio.
      Find out more about Enter the Diamond ›
      Photo by Stéphane ChalmeauArsenal loft by h2o Architectes
      This three-room loft is set inside the mansard roof of a Haussmann-era building in the Arsenale district, which originally served as servant’s quarters for the apartments below.
      Parisian firm h2o Architectes opened up its floor plan to make the most of the top-floor views while installing wooden bookshelves to define different areas and house the extensive library of the apartment’s book-loving owner.
      Their timber construction creates a visual connection with the original parquet floors, while the white paint used to brighten walls and other structural elements continues onto some sections of the floor.
      Find out more about Arsenal loft ›
      This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring bedrooms with minimalist interiors, concrete kitchens and marble-lined bathrooms.

      Read more: More

    • 125 Shares159 Views

      in Rooms

      Rodolphe Parente respectfully rethinks a classic Haussmannian apartment in Paris

      by

      French interior designer Rodolphe Parente has completed a contemporary overhaul of a 19th-century Parisian apartment, reflecting both the building’s heritage and the “radical” art collection of its owner.

      Originally built during Haussmann’s major reconstruction of Paris, the 150-square-metre flat is located in the Canal Saint-Martin neighbourhood in northeastern Paris.
      Rodolphe Parente has renovated a Haussmann-era apartment in ParisAs part of the renovation, Parente sought to celebrate the apartment’s extensive period details. In the entrance hall, a band of gold leaf now highlights the geometry of the circular ceiling and missing sections of the mouldings were painstakingly reinstated.
      “The main idea was to preserve and at some points restore the classic Haussmannian codes of a Parisian apartment,” Parente told Dezeen. “It was important for me to keep the Parisian vibration as well as the radical tone of my client’s art taste.”
      Redfield & Dattner created an abstract fresco behind the dining tableParente began by opening up the apartment to improve the sense of flow, exposing long sealed-off doorways and connecting the dining room with the kitchen.

      Taking cues from the craftsmanship inherent in the apartment, Parente drafted in several contemporary craftspeople including custom painting studio Redfield & Dattner, which created an abstract fresco on the new wall behind the dining table.
      The kitchen balances cabinet finishes of stainless steel and pastel pink”I wanted to bring the hand of craftsmanship into this project,” said Parente.
      “The people I have worked with on this apartment bring something to the creativity in general.”
      A sculptural vintage sofa centres the living roomThroughout the space, a palette of warm neutrals was used to create a sense of immersion.
      “I chose neutral tones to subtly enhance the classical heritage of the apartment and keep an enveloping atmosphere,” the interior designer explained.

      Studio Razavi inserts sculptural furniture block into 19th-century Parisian apartment

      Against this cohesive backdrop, surprisingly colourful elements leap out including the lacquered yellow light above the dining table – Parente’s own design – and the vivid purple rug used against caramel-coloured walls in the main bedroom.
      The kitchen balances cabinet finishes of stainless steel and pastel pink with a frame-like marble splashback, created by French artist Alice Guittard for Double V Gallery.
      “The kitchen is a deconstructed block sitting in the Haussmanian environment,” Parente said. “It is connected to the historical elements through its composition.”
      Period wall panelling remains in the reading roomIn the living room, a sculptural vintage sofa is sited in the centre of the space, anchored by a graphic rug and positioned to disrupt the angles of the room.
      Parente played with contrast via the material and colour palettes throughout the apartment. In the reading room, period wall panelling highlights the modernity of the sofa and chair with their highly lacquered side panels.
      Parente designed a custom chair and sofa for the space”For this room, we have designed custom-made furniture with contemporary and radical shapes bringing a form of reflection to the space,” the designer said.
      The idea of juxtaposition continues with the art displayed in the apartment, with the client’s often provocative pieces completing the aesthetic in each room.
      Colours clash in the main bedroom”The client showed total faith in this balance between modernism and legacy for the interior design. He also wanted to keep this dialogue for the decoration and focused on staying eclectic in his choice of furniture and art,” said Parente.
      “The client has a radical point of view regarding art and design. It was a real pleasure to create a dialogue between the existing pieces and the interior design.”
      A vivid purple rug contrasts with caramel-coloured wallsOther Hausmann-era apartment renovations in Paris have seen interior designers make more dramatic interventions, with Atelier 37.2 adding a sculptural wooden volume to house a new bathroom while Studio Razavi inserted a multifaceted furniture block that takes on a different function in each room.
      The photography is by Giulio Ghirardi.

      Read more: More

    • 100 Shares119 Views

      in Rooms

      Skewed apartment by Clément Lesnoff-Rocard Architect celebrates “edges”

      by

      Local architect Clément Lesnoff-Rocard used clean lines, light colours and mirrors to create a bright interior within this skewed Parisian penthouse.

      Located on the top two floors of a 1980s building in Paris’ 17th arrondissement, The Edge apartment is a penthouse that looks out over the city’s rooftops.
      “This space gave me this very specific feeling that you have when you find yourself on a cliff, attracted by its edge, mesmerized by the beauty of the landscape and quietly terrified of falling down,” said Clément Lesnoff-Rocard of his first impressions of the 105-square-metre apartment.
      “This had to be a topic to work with for me, this edge.”
      The Edge is a Parisian apartment that was designed by Clément Lesnoff-Rocard ArchitectHe also noted how although the building has a flat facade, the apartment’s plan is heavily slanted with “quite a strong angle” to the boulevard below.

      “Like if someone pushed too hard on the edge of the building, bending everything inside so you can nearly never face any neighbour and creating unusual and sharp angles in the floor plan,” explained Lesnoff-Rocard. “Straight skin with twisted bones.”
      In response to these conditions, Lesnoff-Rocard created an off-white interior that celebrates edges.
      The apartment combines textural materials throughoutSpread across two floors, the two-bedroom apartment features an open-plan kitchen, living and dining area on the lower floor.
      A small toilet and built-in cupboards are hidden by mirrored doors along one of the diagonal walls. These serve to reflect the light from the windows on the opposite side of the room.
      It has an open plan arrangementHere, the architects inserted a curved platform that softens the room’s awkward angles. Running along the length of the wall, the platform forms a window seat and a small raised outdoor terrace area.
      A central column clad in fluted plaster boards sits in front of the open-plan kitchen, which features black cabinets and a mirrored splashback.

      The Whale apartment in Paris riffs on art deco design

      A marble staircase with a walk-in closet slotted beneath it is framed by raw concrete. The stair leads up to the first floor where there is a main bedroom with a shower room, two smaller bedrooms and a family bathroom.
      Using a light, tonal colour palette, Lesnoff-Rocard created interesting material junctions, such as black wood and white paint or white marble and white concrete.
      The studio used a light, tonal palette across the interior”The edge can bring the outside in with bay windows or it can take your inside thoughts out in the sky through roof windows,” he said.
      “Concrete can look soft, textured and sensual when composed with a white-painted wall, while it can look hard and slick when topped by a fluffy shaggy pillow,” he added.
      “The edge can invite you to come upstairs with a light portal or it can push you away from the center of the room with a massive angular block. The edge can close with a wall or open with a mirror.”
      Curved edges aim to soften harsh cornersPreviously, Lesnoff-Rocard’s studio has completed an apartment using mirror, brass and simple geometries to create an understated take on art deco.
      Elsewhere in Paris, Java Architecture renovated and extended a stone house adding a wooden tower that is clad in polycarbonate panels.
      Photography is by Laurent Kronental.

      Read more: More