The project consists of renovating a suite in a 30-year-old apartment complex for a young married couple and their daughter, Nagi. Her name translates to "the CALM of the sea, " and it is also the name of this project. The owners had a very basic idea for flexibility in the space. Conscious to adapting to their needs and changing dynamics of a growing family, the design consist of limited walls.
By dismantling the existing space, two curved steel railings at 13m and 4.5m in length are introduced. The railings are suspended at 1.9m from the floor. Like railings of a monorail, they distribute function to the respective spaces.
Finished with 70% diluted white paint on the new floor (Oak), ceiling and wall (Concrete). The diluted white gives an illusion of distance for the eye. New built-in furniture finished in white boards that allow their daughter to draw and wipe away.
Curtains are hung along the extent of the railing. Made with velvet fabric and printed with geometric patterns through a process of melting rayon on to fabric. It creates an interesting effect as light passes through it, almost like fallen snowflakes.
Nagi is our first work that shows us how small spaces can change to adapt to the life of a growing family. We designed the space so it wouldn't be the dominant feature, but life itself. The floor, wall, ceiling and furniture are raw elements and raw materials for this transformation while the railings remain there as a backbone to support it.