White Apartment

Uherske Hradiste, Czech Republic

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White Apartment

Uherske Hradiste, Czech Republic

Firm

Next Level Studio

Type

Residential › Apartment

YEAR

2012

SIZE

0 sqft - 1000 sqft

BUDGET

$10K - 50K

Lasting more than three years, the reconstruction of this three+one apartment in Uherske Hradiste involved an endless process of thought and construction, which finally fulfilled the vision. Every line on a sketch, every statement in a computer program, as well as every single building block, was considered as a crucial step. The most difficult task for an architect is designing for himself, as the possibilities are almost limitless. The design was treated as an opportunity to try out certain procedures, materials, and technologies. The architect was interested in monochrome space, where light can be experimented with, and the color white, which has many shades, tones, and values. During the day, the sun warms the interior with light of 2000 - 3500K, while the artificial evening light is set on 4200K, cooling the space. Artificial light casts varied shadows, highlights different elements, and the interior transmutes. Colored RGB LED strips, hidden in the niches of the furniture, enable dynamic coloration of the space. They can "paint" the space according to preference.

The flat, in the original condition of its 70 years, was almost completely pulled down and cleaned. The intention was to create a continuous unbroken and open space, which would increase the space both optically and physically. Door frames and thresholds were removed; vertical openings enlarged in height, and parquets were filled with unifying polyurethane backfilling. The front door was shifted so that the input space was hit by the mass of shower, bath, and storage compartments. A brick wall separating the living room from the rest of the flat was replaced by a sliding wall of nine feet in length.

The sliding wall primarily serves as a door to the study room; however it mostly remains parked in the kitchen. The rails under passing the transverse girders are covered with gypsum plasterboard (GPB). To create the desired plane between girders, the bearing steel "C" sections were hung, and the inner space in them was used as a side light niche. By physical interconnection between the "entrance hall" and the living room the space was significantly increased, though enabling its closure if one wishes.

The newly created space was left in a white matte paint, including the flooring. Any new interventions embedded, or freestanding furniture, were left in a high gloss. Besides the light, the relationship between matte and glossy surfaces plays an important role, as well as the subtle contrast of structured and smooth areas, as an important means of expression.

The insertion of a classic seating suite in the narrow living room would greatly straighten the passage and was therefore made-to-measure in the space, together with the coffee table. A light object levitates above the desk and focuses its white rays onto the graphics, also designed specifically for this space. If it becomes necessary to insert a larger dining table, the seating suite moves aside closer to the window. A sliding luminaire reflects that shift, so that it continues in levitation above the conference table, as its accompanying echo. A furniture TV wall integrates a sliding door to the bedroom. The location of the built-in wardrobe was chosen at the weather-exposed corner of the house, where it forms a thermal impact zone. The bed conceals an ample storage space with the aid of three drawn-out parts on the sides. The study room is the most rationally elaborated, with an emphasis on horizontal lines that optically prolong the room. The library can be divided by thirds.