Apartment in Barcelona with a mezzanine and interiors in the spirit of Wabi-sabi

Architects from the bureau Colombo and Serboli Architecture have modernized an old apartment in Barcelona, turning its shortcomings into advantages, as in the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

The owner of this apartment in Barcelona, a young Italian fashion designer, asked Matteo Colombo and Andrea Serboli only to update the bathroom and add storage space. But the designers proposed a larger-scale reconstruction that would fully utilize the height of the ceilings and reflect elements of wabi—sabi in the interior, a Japanese philosophy that celebrates the beauty of imperfections and changes that occur over time.

The table top of the dining table was made to order from travertine.

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

"We decided to use elements of wabi-sabi in the project, this allowed us to turn old details and shortcomings like too high ceilings into the "charm of antiquity". At the same time, the furniture and geometry of the space remained simple, with repeating basic shapes — squares, circles, spheres," the architects say.

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

Kitchen utensils are stored in the hollow steps of the stairs

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

A narrow corridor stretches from the entrance to the apartment towards the living room. The architects have preserved most of the original plaster here to reveal the "layers of history". And in the center of the apartment, a staircase was installed to the mezzanine floor, consisting of several parts. It starts with several suspended steps made of whitewashed wood, then there is a section with concrete steps and at the end a few more wooden ones. The lower part of the stairs widens towards the kitchen, forming a bench next to the dining table, and inside the steps there are shelves for storing books and kitchen trifles.

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

On the other side of the stairs there is a small sitting area with a sofa, behind the back of which is a concrete box for house plants. On the wall, the architects left a rectangle not painted over with light paint, in which a historical piece of the wall has been preserved — a page of history and at the same time a fashionable art object!

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Roberto Ruiz

Opposite the recreation area is a large living room with a high window, in front of which the architects erected a small podium made of concrete. There the owner likes to sit forever with a laptop, admiring the view of the quiet courtyard. The entire opposite wall is occupied by a 3.5-meter-high shelving, where the apartment owner plans to place a growing collection of books, magazines and art objects.

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Roberto Ruiz

The bedroom occupies the mezzanine floor (we tell you what it is here). One wall is completely given over to storage. There is a spacious closet with translucent doors made of woven straw, as well as a small storage room for household supplies and an entrance to the bathroom.

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Roberto Ruiz

The headboard of the bed, which serves as a balustrade for the mezzanine, is upholstered with the same straw as on the facades of the wardrobe. A wooden countertop runs around it, forming a shelf behind the bed and two bedside tables.

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

One of the doors has a diagonal cutout that serves as a handrail for the stairs, and the other can be moved to open a small corner with a mirror and a washbasin. The third door hides the entrance to the bathroom, completely lined with mother-of-pearl tiles. "We played with different types of finishes, from glossy to rough, within the overall neutral palette," the architects explain.

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

Photo

Roberto Ruiz

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