Renovation of a 1950s building in Vienna
The apartment is located in a building built in Vienna in the 1950s with very simple standards. The building includes a series of apartments with an outdated room layout. Thanks to this important renovation this apartment of 65 sqm it has been adapted to the current needs of life.
The original layout was characterized by a large entrance without windows which gave access to the various rooms of the living and sleeping area. In 2021 the Architecture studio21 has made substantial changes by uniting the living room and kitchen in a single airy room through the demolition of the non-load-bearing partition wall. The design of a large full-height opening towards the entrance lets in natural light and maintains the division through a sliding panel positioned next to the sofa.
The entrance area thus becomes welcoming and bright, at the end of which there is a new guest toilet and a laundry room, hidden behind a new natural bleached oak wood wall.
The cloudy travertine marble harmonizes with the wooden wall and its warm tones, emphasized by the large wall mirror and warm ceiling lights. Along the left wall there is a full-height wardrobe, with closed and open spaces, and a vertical mirror bottom that amplifies the limited space of the entrance.
A sage play of indirect lights it is activated automatically as soon as this space is accessed.
The dining area creates the element of union between the cooking side and the relaxation area. Strategically positioned along the window, a long bench acts as a leitmotif, inviting people to sit at the table on the wall.
Materials and colors recur in the environment: the cushions, the furniture and the sofa play together in anthracite and delicate pink tones.
The back wall, covered with a floral motifit acts as a framework for the whole and hides both the cabinet for crockery and glass and the access door to the sleeping area, which is also flush with and part of the backdrop.
The kitchen area it is essential but equipped with all the comforts for sophisticated food preparation and contains the boiler and the heating system, in the corner and closed by a door like that of the furniture.
Away from prying eyes, behind the secret door of the dining area furniture, it opens the alcove, the most private area of the house, where the owners can relax.
In the bedroom, an area is dedicated to the lectern and the small library. Warm gray and wood create a calm atmosphere, which is also emphasized here by indirect lighting.
Part of the bedroomin the area preceding the master bathroom, a wardrobe is dedicated, symmetrical for the two users, with an equipped head wall, for all the household linen.
Even in this space, which is relatively compressed, a clever play of mirrors and lights helps to widen the gaze.
The bathroom, obtained in the small existing space, it is equipped with a new shower cabin, reusing the compartment previously used as a toilet. Nuvolato Trani marble, LEDs and mirrors mix with the whites of the bathroom fixtures, creating a pleasant environment. Different settings to relax both light and a totally luminous situation an ideal half-light to relax.
Arch. Serenella Zoppolat | Founder of Architecture21 studio
“We have used the products before Eclipse, aware of the type of environment we intended to create. In order to obtain a continuous surface, especially in the area between the dining room and the bedroom, where the ‘painting’ had to be harmonious and create a fairytale backdrop to the area, we opted for the “flush” model, where the hinges are not visible and there is no frame in the jamb.
The main requirement of all the doors created was to become part of the wall, without predominance and differences in planes that create shadows and distract the observer’s eye from the overall picture. With flush-to-the-wall doors all the details are hidden, only the cut of the hole is recognizable. Eclisse has been a product that has been on the market for many years, it is a historic brand for me that has been working in Europe for more than 30 years. The first use was with pocket doors. Now, however, our focus is on upholstery doors, which allows us to create stylish architectural solutions ».