This project involved the full-scale stripping of a three-story mews house to create a shell for a new gallery and living space for an art collector in Chelsea.
A stripped-back industrial aesthetic was created by casting exposed in situ concrete floor slabs and turning the galvanized pipework for the internal services into a key aesthetic feature. A basement was dug and a steel spiral staircase inserted into the corner of the plan, maximizing usable open floorspace within a minimal city-center footprint. Simple bespoke joinery elements designed by IOA provide concealed storage, cooking and washing facilities. The stripped-back aesthetic creates a blank canvas to allow the inhabitants to focus on the client's art collection, which will be displayed throughout.