An apartment in Copenhagen whose owner hates hugge

Architects Emil Thorup and Line Rode have transformed an apartment in the heart of Copenhagen into an art space where icons of Italian design complement the restraint and conciseness of the Scandinavian style

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The owner of this apartment in Copenhagen, writer and political scientist Mads Christian Esbensen, hates the word "comfort", and the popular Danish concept of "hugge" literally makes him shudder. "It is considered that a Danish house should be cozy. I'm not interested in it at all. I share the ideas of sociologist Irving Hoffman, who believes that a person has a "stage" identity and a behind-the-scenes one. I used it as a metaphor for my home, which I wanted to turn into an uncompromising "solo" stage, more like a gallery of modern art," says Mads.

To implement this idea, Mads invited architects Emil Thorup and Line Rohde from Thorup Rohde Studio. This is a 100% "egoist's dwelling", in which there is no emphasis on comfort, a nice homely atmosphere and a reverent attitude to the iconic Danish design. And the idea of a house in the usual sense of the word is not here either: the apartment is more like an exhibition hall or a room in an expensive designer hotel.

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Tube Chandelier lamp, Michael Anastassiades. Sofa Stay, Gubi. Steel floor lamp, Blinkenberg Møbelsnedkeri. Table, Anja Blinkenberg. The oak parquet was designed by Thorup Rohde Studio and produced by the Copenhagen-based company Listfabrik. 

There are as many as 40 sq.m. allocated for the entrance area in the apartment, and this clearly demonstrates how uncompromisingly Mads Christian Esbensen approached the project. In this large empty space with high ceilings and wood-paneled walls, there are only a few pieces of furniture: a small two-seater sofa, a coffee table, a Wassily armchair by Marcel Breuer.

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Tube Chandelier lamp, Michael Anastassiades. The oak parquet was designed by Thorup Rohde Studio and produced by the Copenhagen-based company Listfabrik. Chair — armchair "Vasily" (Wassily), diz. Marcel Breuer.

"My "backstage" is like a hotel room with a spacious bathroom and bedroom, and the main "stage" (entrance hall, living room and kitchen) I use it to receive guests and business partners. I rarely cook myself and have never even used an oven — relatives came to visit me at Christmas, and we ordered takeaway food," the owner laughs.

The main place in the living room is occupied by a huge sofa for relaxation, designed for this apartment by Thorup Rohde Studio. The walls are painted in a soft shade of white, and a color with a cream undertone is chosen for the ceiling. The adjoining room is equipped for an office and a library with a large collection of books — the only legacy that the owner moved from the old apartment.

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Copycat round table lamp, Flos. White floor lamp, Cappellini. The Rabens Saloner sofa is made according to sketches by Thorup Rohde Studio. Ceiling lamp, Serge Mouille. Tableau coffee table, Fredericia Furniture. Tumba, Paustian. The carpet is made to order, Massimo Copenhagen.

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Curtains, Brandsborg Gardiner. Bar table, diz. Herbert Hirche. Wall lamps, Apparatus. Floor lamp, Rue Verte.

There are not so many rooms in the apartment for an impressive area of 300 sq. m. — only a bedroom with an adjoining bathroom, a small guest room, an office-library, a living room and a kitchen without a dining room. The common area is devoid of decor and personal belongings that Mads moved to his summer house. But even with such a conscious "facelessness", this space is 100% a reflection of the personality of the owner of the house.

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The Cloud Lamp XL 73 kitchen lamp from Apparatus literally hovers over the kitchen table. Bar stools, Gubi. The kitchen is designed by Thorup Rohde Studio and manufactured by Fjorten03. Countertops, Contec.

"Not in every project you can so freely dispose of the area. As much as 100 sq.m. we have allocated only for the bedroom and bathroom. Mads gave us complete freedom of action both stylistically and financially. There are almost no standard solutions here, everything is designed specifically for this apartment. The rooms have a Google Home system installed so that you can remotely control sound, light, temperature, and appliances," says Emil Torup.

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There are many design icons in the apartment, one of which is the Cloud lamp from Apparatus in the kitchen. "It's not that I don't like Danish design, but I've had enough of Danish furniture," explains Mads. — Our admiration for her already crosses all boundaries, in every house there are the same iconic chairs, lamps, armchairs… Enough stamps! I myself grew up in an old house surrounded by icons of Danish design, and when I could afford it, the first thing I bought was lamps by Paul Henningsen and Louis Poulsen. Now I don't want to surround myself with a lot of things. I like that my apartment is so minimalistic. It was great to start from scratch, and the result exceeded all my wildest expectations."

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However, it was not at all easy to achieve stylistic purity. "Minimalism is the most expensive style, and we faced many challenges. Surprise followed surprise. The house itself is quite old, listed as a historical heritage, but the apartment, unfortunately, was renovated in the 1970s without respect for the original architecture. Therefore, it was too late to restore anything other than the stucco ceilings, doors, frames, wall panels and fireplace. Everything is new in the master bedroom and many other places," says Emil Torup.

All rooms were painted in light muted shades from File Under Pop, lamps of iconic French, Italian, American designers were used for lighting — the iconic lamps of the Castiglioni brothers and Serge Mouy and modern models from Apparatus and Michael Anastassiades.

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The cabinets were made inconspicuous so that they literally merged with the wall. Chair Spanske Stol, diz. Børge Mogensen is one of the few pieces of Danish design that Mads left in the apartment. Steel floor lamp, Blinkenberg Møbelsnedkeri.

A very large part of the architects' work was connected with the arrangement of a private, "backstage" part of the apartment — a bedroom with a huge bathroom, in which there was a place for both a bath and a shower cabin with two upper watering cans. Laconic and simple-looking solutions were used here, resembling a hotel room for a much-traveled Mads. 

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Bed, Jensen Continental. Headboard, Rue Verte. Lamps on the sides of the bed and on the ceiling, Michael Anastassiades. Bedside tables, Ethnicraft. Carpet, Massimo Copenhagen.

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