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Architects: faire
- Area: 48 m²
- Year: 2022
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Photographs:Philippe BILLARD
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Manufacturers: Arnould, Nemo
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Lead Architects: Nikhil Calas & Federico Diodato
Text description provided by the architects. This 50 sqm flat is located in a quiet passage in the 7th arrondissement of Paris, just a few streets away from the Invalides. The original floorplan did not allow for a generous kitchen, a large dining table, or a comfortable living room while closing off all the windows.
Our aim was to give the flat a feeling of space and connection, between rooms and volumes. We decided to remove most walls and install a glass wall to ensure the continuity of all the windows, creating circulation along the facade, and mirroring the balcony outside.
As both architects and carpenters, we designed three wooden volumes to structure the space while keeping it open: The first one is the kitchen. Made of wood and granite it creates spaces of transition and opens up to the rest of the flat, letting views, light, and movements flow. The okoumé and birch plywoods, the fluted glass, and the granite countertop create an intricate and generous enfilade of spaces.
The second one is the bookcase. It plays with light and dark woods, round and straight shapes, and alternating filled and empty spaces. While allowing large amounts of hidden storage, the whole bookcase is animated by the contrast between the hand-turned ipé posts, the birch plywood shelves and the okoumé plywood faces.
And finally, the third one is the cupboard. A wooden piece of bespoke furniture located in the bedroom that combines storage, desk, and bedside tables wrapped around the bed and making the most of this small space.
The open plan, the contrast of materials, and the light coming through the cascade of windows all join together to give a sense of warmth and well-being: a feeling of home.
