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      Worrell Yeung designs industrial artist studios in historic Brooklyn factory buildings

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      New York architecture studio Worrell Yeung has transformed historic factory buildings in Brooklyn Navy Yard into multi-use workspaces and artist studios featuring time-worn brick walls and weathered beams and columns.The adaptive reuse project involved remodelling 77 Washington, a six-storey former masonry factory built in the 1920s, and four other buildings situated around on the property.

      It is located at the corner of Washington Avenue and Park Avenue in Brooklyn Navy Yard, a former shipbuilding complex between the Dumbo and Williamsburg neighbourhoods undergoing regeneration.

      Worrell Yeung drew from the area’s historic architecture and the design of early 20th-century New York warehouses to update the 38,000-square-foot (3530.3-square-metre) multi-use art and office space.

      “The existing buildings were so rich with history and layered with texture that we wanted our design to highlight these found conditions while also updating to accommodate new uses and new programs,” said co-principal Max Worrell.

      A six-storey brick structure occupies the centre of the property, with a cluster of three one-storey buildings situated on its south end and a single garage unit located on the opposite side.
      On the main building the brick facade was left untouched, while the sides of the building are painted white.

      Storefronts situated along the street level were restored to house artist and photography studios. Each of the exteriors is painted dark blue and is fronted with large windows that flood natural light into the interiors.
      The low-lying structures are connected by a central courtyard filled with gravel and plants laid out by landscape firm Michael van Valkenburgh Associates. To form the outdoor patio and bike storage area the studio removed a roof that previously covered the space.

      In the garden three solid oak logs form a series of benches. Over the past decade a local shipbuilder gathered the reclaimed wood used for the seating following a number of storms in the region.
      Inside the materials and patterns are evocative of old Brooklyn factories and warehouses. The floors are covered with concrete and metal diamond plates.

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      Exposed brick walls coated with layers of old paint pair with structural wood columns and beams in the open-plan spaces, which include meeting rooms, a small kitchenette and a large lobby area.
      Brooklyn Navy Yard woodworker Bien Hecho repurposed timber floor joists from the building into a custom-built conference table and a bench.

      Steel grids installed across the elevator shaft windows are visible from the building’s exterior and match the pattern on the translucent glass and plywood walls located in the lobby.
      “These interventions are a nod to the aesthetics of storied factory buildings and Navy Yard warehouses, which historically featured grids in their sash windows, fencing, and ship docks,” added co-principal Jejon Yeung.

      Worrell Yeung was founded in 2014 by Max Worrell and Jejon Yeung. The studio has completed a number of renovation projects in New York City, including a loft in Chelsea and an apartment inside Dumbo’s Clocktower building.

      Other office projects in Brooklyn Navy Yard are a space for tech entrepreneurs located in a former warehouse renovated by New York developer Macro Sea and Marvel Architects and a new 16-storey co-working building by S9 Architecture.
      Photography is by Naho Kubota.

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      Ravi Raj and Evan Watts expose chunky timber in Spears Building Loft renovation

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      Architects Ravi Raj and Evan Watts have created a monolithic, concrete-like chimney in the overhaul of a loft apartment inside a former cigarette packing factory in New York City’s Chelsea neighbourhood. Raj, who runs RARARA, worked with Watts of D&A Companies to overhaul the residence in the former factory, which was completed by the Kinney Brothers in 1880. It also served as a furniture warehouse before it was converted into a condo building in 1996.

      Previously featuring “dark dwelling spaces”, as described by the team, the residence was renovated to create a bright and open living space for a couple.

      This included stripping out walls and dropped ceilings to create larger spaces and revealing existing brickwork and timber columns and beams.

      At the rear of the residence, the team reconfigured the layout of the bedrooms and bathrooms, creating a third bedroom and making a new hallway.

      “Extraneous millwork and partitions blocking daylight to the interior were thoughtfully removed to help open each room and improve the flow between them,” said Ravi Raj Architect.
      “The great room presented an unexpected discovery after the team removed the dropped ceilings and unnecessary wall enclosures, revealing the original heavy timber structure – in surprisingly great condition. This move both simplified the layout while also paying homage to the building’s historical fabric.”

      Throughout Spears Building Loft, the designers chose a soft and pale material palette that complements the existing details and also brightens the interiors.
      Bleached walnut planks covers the floor in the living area, while the walls and built-in storage are painted bright-white or yellow.

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      A wood-burning stove is updated with a hearth covered in a plaster that looks like concrete and extends into a bench either side. The team chose the render because it is meant to reference the warehouse’s poured concrete floors.

      Pale wood also forms the base of the white-marble island in the kitchen topped and old corner cabinets are ebonized black. They form a series of dark detail throughout, like the dark wooden dining chairs and artwork.
      “The owners took care in selecting minimal yet soft and textured furnishings paired with colourful art that highlight the industrial-like quality of the space,” the team added.

      The red brick is painted white in the bedrooms to make them all them light and bright, while the bathrooms display a mix of black, white and grey marbles.
      Spears Building Loft is located in New York’s Chelsea neighbourhood next to the city’s elevated park, the High Line.
      Other renovation projects in the area include a residence that architecture duo BoND turned into a light-filled home with a stainless steel fireplace surround and an apartment with a green mural dripping in gold paint.
      Photography is by Nick Glimenakis.

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    • 88 Shares119 Views

      Two-storey bookshelf rises inside renovated Madrid house

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      Spanish architecture firm Zooco Estudio has covered the walls of this Madrid residence with bookshelves that span two levels.House 6 is a detached single-family home located in northern Madrid. Local studio Zooco Estudio overhauled the residence contrasting white interiors with pale wood cabinetry and herringbone patterned flooring.

      The centrepiece of the design is a white shelving unit that extends two floors and wraps around the walls of the house’s living room and dining area.

      On the lower level, the volume comprises dozens of rectangular cases for storing books, movies and electronics, including a mounted television. A series of narrow cubbies also occupy the space between a glass dining table and entryway creating storage for hanging apparel.

      “As a unifying element, a shelf rises colonising both living and lobby spaces,” the studio said. “This way we integrate aesthetic and functionality in one single element.”
      The shelves continue on the upper level with a rectangular volume along a hallway. Pendant light fixtures hang from the ceiling to illuminate the floor below.

      In the kitchen, pale oak fronts the cabinetry and details the base of a white kitchen island. White tiles form the splashback behind the sink and cover the rectangular range hood hanging above the island.

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      A spiral staircase with black metal steps is carved into the wall to create a sculptural focal point within the space.

      Upstairs the bedroom and bathrooms are concealed by a wall of slender wooden slats lacquered white. The narrow strips separate the master bedroom from the bathroom. A section of the millwork is intentionally left open to expose the shower.

      “A continuous view was required so you can see through the slats to the shower,” the studio added. “However, the private areas of the bathroom are completely hidden.”
      In the bathroom the studio has covered the walls and floors with white tiles and blue grouting. A geometric counter clad with blue tiles snakes across the ground and up the wall to form a storage closet in the space.

      Zooco Estudio is an architecture firm with offices in Madrid and Santander founded by Miguel Crespo Picot, Javier Guzmán Benito and Sixto Martín Martínez. The studio has also completed an art centre in Verín that comprises several granite buildings and a child play area built out of wood for a co-working office in Santa Monica, California.

      Other renovation projects in Madrid include a house with a permeable metal sculpture designed by Beta Ø Architects and an apartment by Lucas y Hernández Gil with sliding wall partitions.
      Photography is by Imagen Subliminal.
      Project credits:
      Project manager: Miguel Crespo Picot, Javier Guzmán Benito, Sixto Martín MartínezConstruction: Nimbo Proyectos S LLighting: Zooco EstudioFurniture design: Zooco Estudio

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    • 113 Shares199 Views

      Studio Collective revitalises modernist LA tower for Hotel June

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      Los Angles practice Studio Collective has renovated a mid-century building in the city designed by modernist architect Welton Becket in the 1960s to create a laid-back hotel.Hotel June is a 250-room property in a white, 12-storey tower designed by Los Angeles architect Welton Becket in 1968.

      Becket built a number of modernist buildings in the city, including the rounded Capitol Records Building, Koreatown’s Equitable Life Building skyscraper and the Los Angeles Music Center’s Ahmanson Theater near Frank Gehry’s metallic Walt Disney Concert Hall.

      This building, which is in Los Angeles’ beachside community of Playa Del Rey on Lincoln Boulevard, was previously another hotel before it was overhauled by Studio Collective.
      While the exterior was left intact, the interiors are refreshed with many built-in oak pieces, terrazzo floors and woven accents. Pink and green details add a pop of colour.

      The interiors have “a sense of the new and dynamic through coastal influences and a true California spirit” said the studio. The hotel features a pared-back feeling with natural materials and subtle use of colour.

      A lobby has cream terrazzo floors, a wood-clad ceiling and a bright painting on a wall designed by Brooklyn artist Alex Proba. Becket’s granddaughter, Alexandra Becket, also created wallpapers for other areas of the hotel.
      Hotel rooms have white walls, woven carpeting and a mixture of modernist and more contemporary furniture pieces, including Hem sofas. Bright blue and grey are integrated into the suites for visual contrast.

      “Hotel June is at once airy and cosy, blending clean lines and warm natural woods, earthy finishes, and custom furnishings,” the studio said.

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      White oak closets, custom platform beds and wooden daybeds are intended to evoke mid‐century designs, like those by Charles and Ray Eames and relate to the building’s history.

      “Guestrooms and corridors play with colour-blocking geometries (that recall the work of local mid-century industrial designers Charles and Ray Eames),” Studio Collective said.
      Bathrooms have black fixtures and showers are clad in small, square tiles in grey with dark grout.

      In the hotel’s restaurant and sitting area, glass walls are shaded by slatted oak wood screens to help filter natural sunlight. A white, curved sofa and a large woven light fixture decorate the lounge, while the dining area has dark terrazzo floors and wood furniture.

      Hotel June is complete with an outdoor swimming pool, patio, an outdoor bar and restaurant, a fire pit and indoor gym.
      The property, which is called Hotel June to reflect new beginnings and California’s year-round summer sensibility, is the brainchild of Proper Hospitality co-founders Brian De Lowe and Brad Korzen.

      The Proper hotels in California, which are designed by Kelly Wearstler, include Santa Monica Proper with a similarly relaxed style and San Francisco Proper overflowing with colourful art and furniture.
      Hotel June joins a number of hotels recently completed in Los Angeles, like Ace Hotel, the West Hollywood Edition Hotel by Ian Schrager and John Pawson, Arts District Firehouse Hotel and 1 Hotel West Hollywood.
      Photography is by The Ingalls.

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    • 113 Shares119 Views

      Architect couple turns Edinburgh apartment into modern living space

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      Married architects Luke and Joanne McClelland have overhauled their own apartment in Edinburgh, Scotland, to feature a sequence of contemporary light-filled living spaces.The lateral apartment spreads across the drawing-room levels of two adjoining Georgian townhouses in Edinburgh’s Comely Bank neighbourhood.
      Joanne and Luke McClelland – who runs his own architecture studio called MCLND – purchased it back in 2018, having spent the past eight years living in a cramped flat in London.

      Despite the grander scale of the Edinburgh apartment, it still had some significant problem areas.

      The north-facing living area had hardly any access to natural light, the bathroom had a dated, 70s-style turquoise interior and the kitchen was small and felt isolated from the other rooms.

      To create a bright and modern home, the McClelland’s decided they had to completely reconfigure the floor plan.
      The former kitchen has been opened up and now includes a dining area, complete with white-painted walls and oak herringbone floors.

      Along the rear wall runs a series of matt-black and wooden cabinets which were all sourced from IKEA – although the architects both have previously designed homes for wealthy clients, they didn’t feel the need to use expensive brands to achieve a high standard of design.
      “Having specified kitchens at over 10 times our available budget, we tried to use affordable products to recreate the specific qualities that previous clients associated with luxury, simplicity, symmetry and integration,” said the pair.

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      To complement the cabinetry, black taps, pendant lamps and door handles have also been incorporated in the space. Black-frame chairs with woven seats have also been placed around the dining table.

      Doorways have been widened to let sunlight from the south side of the apartment penetrate the new living area, which has been created in a former bedroom.
      It’s dressed with a slate-grey sectional sofa, a couple of armchairs upholstered in forest-green velvet armchairs and a graphic monochrome rug.

      Jet-black paint has also been applied to the surround of the room’s fireplace, which used to be bright orange.
      “Whilst it didn’t fit with the Georgian property, there was a charm in the curved bricks and sheer brutality of the design,” the architects explained.

      The architects split the old living area to form two separate bedrooms, both of which feature original pine flooring and ornate cornices.
      A cupboard in the apartment and the disused pantry have together been transformed into a shower room. Stark white tiles have been applied in a grid-like fashion across its walls, while the floor has a striking triangle print.

      In the main bathroom, surfaces have been updated with glazed green tiles which clad the lower half of the walls and the front of the tub.
      The sink basin perches on top of a restored 1960s wooden sideboard by Danish designer Ib Kofod Larsen.

      Luke McClelland launched his own studio this year after leaving his position at Studio 304. He and his wife, Joanne McClelland, met whilst both studying architecture at the Edinburgh College of Art.
      Their apartment joins a number of design-focused properties in the Scottish capital.
      Others include Flitch House by Oliver Chapman Architects, which references the Arts and Crafts movement, and another home by studio Archer + Braun, which has a red-sandstone extension.
      Photography is by Zac and Zac.
      Project credits:
      Architects: Luke and Joanne McClellandStructural engineer: McColls

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      Rust Architects softens modernist Tel Aviv apartment with oak details

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      Tel Aviv studio Rust Architects has renovated an apartment in the Israeli city for a couple who both work from home.The apartment is in a residential building in the city centre built in the modernist-era international style.
      Rust Architects renovated the one-bedroom unit with a pared-down material palette and colour scheme.

      “It is in a modernist building, so we designed the interior as simple and modern,” Rust Architects founder Ranaan Stern told Dezeen.

      “Similar to Bauhaus buildings principles, the apartment has a large span that brings in natural light but maintains comfortable proportions for the space and the hot temperatures of the Tel Aviv summer months.”

      The apartment is for a young couple who are both professional photographers and designers.
      “Both homeowners work from home, so proximity and visual angles between different spaces such as the workroom and living room were essential,” the studio added.

      The apartment comprises an open-plan kitchen, living and dining area with sliding glass doors that access a terrace.
      An L-shaped hallway accommodates the entry and accesses a home office, which was custom-made by Rust Architects and enclosed by a metal frame with glass doors. The partition allows natural light to pass into the corridor.

      Various wood details also feature in the design, particularly a kitchen cabinet made of oak that houses the refrigerator and oven. Its rounded corner meets the hallway and has a series of shelves and doors.

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      A built-in media console in the living room nearby is also made of wood, and a wall in the office is clad in the same natural material.

      The touches of wood are contrasted with industrial details, such as an exposed concrete block wall in the living room and electrical systems on the ceiling.
      There were left exposed by the studio in order to keep the apartment’s original height.

      A variety of floor coverings provide visual depth across the unit, which otherwise features white surfaces and black window frames.
      Small, black tiles cover the bathroom floors and walls, the home office has wood floors and large concrete tiles cover the kitchen and living room.

      “The concrete tiles on the floor produce a cool and pleasant feeling, especially during the summer months, and the natural oak in the carpentry creates a relaxed and warm feeling,” Rust Architects said.
      The studio, which was founded by Stern in 2016, has also redesigned a 1960s apartment and created a home with cubby holes, shelves and cabinets – both are in Tel Aviv.
      Photography is by Yoav Peled.

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      Debaixo do Bloco Arquitetura remodels 1960s Brasília apartment

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      Brazilian studio Debaixo do Bloco Arquitetura has opened up the layout of an apartment in Brasília built in the 1960s to meet a family’s contemporary requirements.The remodelled apartment is located in residential building 308S in Brasília’s model superquadra, one of the first completed apartment blocks of the urban design scheme conceived by architect Lucio Costa and landscape architect Burle Marx.

      Local studio Debaixo do Bloco Arquitetura reconfigured the apartment’s standard layout, which split the main living areas into two separate spaces.

      In the updated floor plan the exposed concrete walls are cut open to form a single, shared space for the family to gather.

      The studio was careful to preserve modernist design elements in the apartment, including its granilite flooring and white cobogo screens.
      “The project is summed up in an exaltation of the Brazilian architecture lighting what is most typical in the city’s residences and buildings while joining the modernist and contemporary office technologies and references,” said the studio.

      Black cabinetry with corrugated glass doors contrasts with the white countertops in the kitchen. Natural light passes through the square cut-outs on the cobogo wall to brighten the narrow space.
      In the living room low-lying wood shelving units wrap around the space forming a bench in front of the large windows and a surface for storing objects along the interior wall. The lounge is furnished with a grey couch and wood tables.

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      In the dining area and library, a massive wooden bookshelf is stacked with books and audio equipment.
      Three doorways that lead to the bedrooms and bathroom are concealed within the unit, which the studio custom-built.

      In the master bedroom, the backside of the shelf forms a decorative wall of wood panelling. Opposite the large windows, a row of black doors creates a closet that doubles as a doorway to enter the bathroom situated between the two bedrooms.
      Walls in the shared bathroom are clad with vertically-laid green tiles. A large rectangular mirror hangs above the wood vanity, which is topped with two circular sink basins.

      The existing cobogo screen and concrete wall from the kitchen continue into the second bedroom. In this bedroom the closet is covered with a series of mirrors that reflect the space’s wood furnishings and the decorative window treatment.
      Several of the wood furniture pieces in the apartment are designed by Debaixo do Bloco Arquitetura architect Clay Rodrigues. The studio also cut a hole into the cobogo wall so the client’s cats could access their litter box.

      Brazilian studio Bloco Arquitetos also renovated an apartment on the same building block in Brasília. As part of the remodel the studio added sliding translucent glass walls.
      Other projects by Debaixo do Bloco Arquitetura, which translates to English as Under the Block, include an abandoned hospital transformed into a contemporary art gallery.
      Photography is by Joana France.

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      Pale woodwork updates 1920s Riverside Apartment in New York’s Upper West Side

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      New York practice Format Architecture Office has reorganised a 1920s apartment with custom millwork in the city’s Upper West Side.The renovated apartment by Format Architecture Office is in a Gothic Revival building on Riverside Drive, giving the project its name, Riverside Apartment.

      Completed before the second world war, the original apartment building had large residences that were later converted into smaller homes, which the studio said formed “a series of unconventional layouts”.

      “The building was originally constructed in 1926 and arranged around opulently scaled residences with multiple bedrooms and gallery spaces,” Format Architecture Office added.

      “It was converted to cooperative ownership in 1968, which created a large variety of accessible unit types, but also a series of unconventional layouts, as formerly single apartments were subdivided into two or even three different units,” it said.
      The renovation reorganised the existing one-bedroom unit to include another bedroom that doubles as an office, as well as a powder room and a reorganised galley-style kitchen. The decor was updated with custom cabinets and enlarged wood-clad corridors across the 1,000-square-foot (92-square-metre) space.

      “The primary goals for the project were to create flexible connections between spaces, enhance access to natural light and maximise storage,” the studio continued.
      Upon entering is a foyer with a coat closet, and a cabinet with a glass portion above that pulls natural light in from windows in a home office. A bedroom adjacent is complete with an ensuite and walk-in closet.

      A sliding wood door separates the office from a living and dining room. The pocket door is in one of the home’s corridors, which are intended to mark different areas.
      “Large thresholds between public spaces celebrate transitions and become extensions of different wood-clad storage solutions that complement the myriad needs of a small domestic space,” said the studio.

      All of the millwork at Riverside Apartment, including the corridors and custom cabinets, are made from Anigre wood – an African hardwood commonly used for furniture and cabinetry.
      Other corridors are in the entry and kitchen, while built-in bookshelves are prominent in the living room and office.

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      Contemporary details are accompanied by the apartment’s existing elements, like original wood-panelled doors with the glass transoms.
      Format Architecture Office aimed to emulate the early 20th-century style through other details to create “a mixture of clean lines and pre-war inspired details to celebrate the eclectic tastes of its owner”.

      The glass wall in the entry is a reinterpretation of existing glazing, which bring light through the home. Another ribbed glass detail partially conceals the dining room from the kitchen.
      A wood table, 1950s Eames Wire Chairs and a minimal white light fixture furnish the dining room, while the living room has a blue sofa and an Eames moulded plywood lounge chair from the second world war.
      Off-white walls are paired with white moulding and new oak flooring for a pared-down aesthetic, while an orange-painted front door adds another pop of colour that complements teal accents.

      Format Architecture Office founded in 2017 by architects Andrew McGee and Matthew Hettler, who met as undergraduates at the University of Michigan. The studio is based in Brooklyn and has also designed an office for a tech company in New York’s Midtown area with cafe-style seating and muted interiors.
      Other renovated homes in the Upper West Side are an apartment with a built-in bed by Stadt Architecture and a townhouse by Space4Architecture with a white spiral staircase.
      Photography is by Nick Glimenakis.

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