anniversary-magazine

[anniversary-magazine]

The Serial Vision Home of Barcelona by Mesura

In the book The Concise Townscape, Gordon Cullen states that “one building standing alone in the countryside is experienced as a work of architecture, but bring half a dozen buildings together, and art other than architecture is made possible. Several things begin to happen grouping, which would be impossible in an isolated building. We may walk through and past buildings, and as a corner is turned, an unsuspected building is suddenly revealed.”

In the Serial Vision Home, a big, wide hallway serves as the leading spine of the space. The house’s walls, which are understood as an integral structure, create a feeling of transition while passing them by, giving each room a distinct character and atmosphere. In this sense, the body of walls of this Barcelona home becomes a metaphor for Cullen’s group of buildings. 

Transitioning Through Layering: Materiality as a Tool to Create Intuitive Spaces

As human beings, we are heavily influenced by the atmospheres surrounding us, effortlessly shaping our perceptions and changing our attitudes depending on the space we inhabit. In the Serial Vision Home, materiality assumes a leading role to help meet these premises and cover two primordial functions: setting the house’s mood and making every space intuitively identifiable. A soothing colour palette takes over the walls, ceilings, and floors to make these purposes palpable. This combination of tones creates a natural and pleasant environment; a sense of calmness reigns the space. 

The walls are coated with natural mortar using an aerated lime base, changing colour depending on the light, and off-white paint in the brightest rooms. Floors are set up in wood, and in certain areas such as bathrooms, they are built in stone. These combinations of materiality, light and colour alter as the user walks from one end to another, shaping different experiences while transitioning through the wall-layering of the Serial Vision Home.

A Matter of Perspective: Distribution in the Serial Vision Home

The Serial Vision Home is defined by a long, wide corridor that functions as the vertebral axis to transition via the house. With multiple rooms opening on both sides, this space is conceptually cut in half to distinguish two main areas: day and night. The first one turns to one of Barcelona’s liveliest streets, which keeps it alive from dawn to dark. In this first half, we find the living room, the dining room, the kitchen, an open library, a multipurpose room, and a restroom. When transitioning to the night area, the spine hits its thinnest spot right in the centre, opening up again to unfold into a big, peaceful park. The master bedroom and bathroom, the studio, the playroom, and an additional bedroom and bathroom make up this second half of the construction.

The house uses the large hallway’s depth to accentuate the compartmentation between areas. In the first half, areas such as the living and dining room come across as active for their brightness and, from this point on to the night area, spaces change in colour one after the other to help understand their role. Again, with the help of light, materiality and colour palette, the user can oversee the mood alterations throughout the Serial Vision Home.

Connection Between Spaces: Walls as a Tool for Gathering and Intertwining

Each area in the Serial Vision Home is created to adapt to the users’ needs, natures, and lives. The day zone, in particular, is organized in four independent spaces (the living and dining room, library, and kitchen) and has been designed so that their traditional functions are now inherently connected. The result is a diaphanous area for the users to develop everyday life, leaving enough space to wander around. 

This feeling is accomplished by an effort to open these formerly closed-up spaces; all master doors have been removed, and only two walls have been preserved, so a physical and dynamic visual connection is formed when walking through them.

All images by Marina Denisova

Courtesy of Mesura

#Mesura #Marina Denisova #Spain #Barcelona #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

Dernier Occupant: École de Pensée in Residence at Maison Linton

On view from April 15 to April 17, 2022. 12h - 17h

Maison Linton 3424 Simpson St, Montreal,

Qc H3G 2J3, Canada.

Despite its size and grandeur, Maison Linton in Downtown Montreal has gone unseen. Built in the 19th Century, the house has lived many lives, existing as a place of immense luxury and total abandonment. Yet, its elegant spaces and refined details remain, withstanding the passing of time.

Sitting within half an acre in the Golden Square Mile, Maison Linton is an elegantly appointed and beautifully-detailed piece of architecture conceived by architect Cyrus P. Thomas. With soaring ceilings and an abundance of original features, each of the four floors is generous and well-proportioned, accented with columns and pilasters, moulded-plaster ornaments and crown mouldings.

Having fallen into disrepair, Maison Linton was thoughtfully and sensitively restored by the Sweibel family, whose work ensured the building's continued survival, highlighting its timeless appeal. After many years of closure to the public, due initially to the building's abandonment and more recently serving as a corporate head office for a public fashion company, the Sweibel family is inviting Montreal's creative community into the building with a series of collaborations and events. Conceived with the hope that Maison Linton might become an integral part of the city's cultural landscape, the house will be experienced by a new audience and occupied by a new generation of tenants.

Dernier Occupant marks the debut of a new era for the property. Led by architectural designer Mitchell Sweibel, the collaboration will see Maison Linton host the Montreal menswear brand, École De Pensée, with whom he has found somewhat of a kindred spirit.

A coming together of contemporary design and historic architecture, the collaboration is not rooted in the juxtaposition of old and new but rather in their similarities, exploring what connects designs that span different times and forms. Instead of providing a white canvas, Maison Linton offers an entirely new context - one that is infused with history, complexity and character.

Hosting École De Pensée, the event will present pieces from their own collection alongside furniture from the Danish design studio Frama to create open-ended narratives and textural assemblages. Blurring the lines between different forms and periods of design, the ephemeral installation is a meditation on permanence and timelessness.

Thoughtful and considered, both École De Pensée and Frama focus on creating pieces that are meaningful and enduring. The three founders of École De Pensée - Marc-André Garand, William Lessard and Julien Gauthier - create clothing with a rich history, using heritage materials and traditional techniques, and borrowing shapes and silhouettes from bygone eras. Describing their approach to design as "an inclination towards simplicity, without falling into minimalism," École De Pensée strikes a balance between the classic and the contemporary, resulting in clothing that is, in its own way, timeless.

Frama elevates its practical and pared-back aesthetic by designing objects with a strong utilitarian appeal through quality materials and craftsmanship. Finding the simplest form - the purest expression - Frama has developed a decidedly modern language while also being informed by classical forms. Much like École De Pensée, theirs are designs made to be used, worn and loved - acquiring meaning, built up in layers over time, to create an inimitable patina.

Dernier Occupant brings together several elements in a state of flux, shifting between past and present, history and modernity, looking back while moving forward. An exploration of the effects of entropy - its inevitability and its beauty - the collaboration is a celebration of Montreal's design heritage, past and present.

All images by Gabriel DeRossi

#École de Pensée #Installation #Mitchell Sweibel #Maison Linton #Montreal #Gabriel DeRossi #Frama #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

Bi Apartment by Francesc Rifé

Visual silence defines this new dwelling in Barcelona. A few whispers, such as the irregular rhythm of the oak wood slats and intended details, bring a singular narrative to the whole project.

Balancing lines aim to wrap the residents in an intimate and warm environment, while the use of white creates a simple and calm atmosphere. Precisely, to favour the place’s calmness, most of the container elements and shelves are located close to the ground, focusing attention on the lowest part of the house. In this way, the walls are transparent and undecorated, with only natural light bathing their surfaces daily.

The Bulthaup kitchen, open to the dining and living room, shares the straightforward and clean narrative of the rest of the project, while the application of some of its surfaces in Calacatta white marble makes it more sophisticated and gains personality. The entire space is accompanied by white linen curtains that soften the light and define the border between the intimate interior and a more exposed exterior.

All the rooms have direct access to a U-shaped terrace where a large metal pergola has been installed in an anthracite gray finish, which seeks to provide shade. Next to this structure is the swimming pool and a volume of built-in natural stone that integrates the Jacuzzi and a seating area. The exterior space is completed with a bar counter, a large table, and a support piece of furniture that incorporates the barbecue. Vegetation embraces the project, orienting the views, and consciously isolating them from the urban environment.

All images by Javier Márquez Courtesy of Francesc Rifé Studio

#Francesc Rifé #Francesc Rifé Studio #Javier Márquez #Barcelona #Spain #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

Rooted Flows: Solidified Reflections by Linde Freya Tangelder

In the show Rooted Flows: Solidified Reflections by designer Linde Freya Tangelder, founder of Antwerp-based studio Destroyers/Builders, the structural and plastic syntax of architecture is broken down into its elements, only to be recomposed and reimagined as objects of varying degrees of utility. Consisting of pieces made as one-offs or limited editions, the results of Tangelder’s residency in Turin can be interpreted both as architectural fragments and highly sculptural design essays — an ambiguity that takes them beyond their function as mere furnishings or décor.

Resulting from a collaboration between Linde Freya Tangelder, Carwan Gallery, and IN Residence, the project features the designer’s first illustrated monographic book alongside a body of work conceived in Turin during the residency program with her first product designed for Cassina.

All images by Jeroen Verrecht

#Linde Freya Tangelder #Destroyers/Builders #Carwan Gallery #IN Residence #Cassina #Jeroen Verrecht #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

EG Project by Jean Verville Architecte

Addressing the fictional potential of architectural space, the EG project is part of an actual hybridization between architecture and installation intervention. Fascinated by the photographic worlds illustrating the eclectic production of Jean Verville, clients eager for unusual creative experiences adopt the playful approach of the architect with passion, rigour, and sensitivity.

The result is an architecture that is both functional and aesthetic, offering a minimalist and playful experience distinctive of the work of Studio Jean Verville architects.

“A complicit, mischievous adventure... an amazing result for and, above all, worthy of our team!” - Vincent Drapeau and Samuel G. Labelle, co-owners, Les Entreprises d’électricité E.G. Ltée.

Prioritizing an architectural intervention with an assumed scenography and falling within a strategy of minimizing its environmental impact, the project proposes the rehabilitation of a disused industrial building from the 1980s to establish the head office of Les Entreprises d’électricité, E.G. Ltée, founded in 1951. An imposing architectural device deploying 250 stainless steel strut channels organizes distances and proximities, circulations, and groupings. These metal profiles, typical in the electrical field, are used to fix the partitions, support the furniture, and camouflage all of the wirings. This profusion of elements composes an irregular frame that marks the space with vertical lines structuring the spatial delimitations. The industrial character, offered by the raw surfaces of the concrete, the shine of the stainless steel, and the translucent partitions unifying in an entity energized by accents of orange colour, loads the space with an aesthetic cohesion emphasizing the re-interpretation of the open-plan office concept. Both minimalist and expressive, EG offers an environment indulgent of accumulation and excess to stimulate the participatory experience that is part of the daily life of its users.

Promoting a layout where employees can easily communicate with each other, the intervention combines private areas, ensuring the need for physical distance for the protection and well-being of everyone and meeting spaces, rest stations, and areas for sports and entertainment. The individual and collaborative workspaces, requiring a large area, are set up in a portion subtracted from the vast storage space of the building. The part dedicated to offices, a space distributed in half-levels and proving too cramped for the company's needs, requires a complete reconfiguration (reception, administrative offices, conference room, kitchen, employee room, and storage). Partially deconstructed, the existing firewall, made of concrete blocks, is transformed into an articulated railing and a staircase offering visual and physical access to this new sector located below the administrative spaces. This work area, defined by a new enclosure in concrete blocks, constitutes a generous volume with a height of six meters below the ceiling, benefitting from level access with the spacious warehouse area to optimize the premises' functionality. To maximize the contribution of natural light, the vast garage door is replaced by a curtain wall. On the roof, the addition of six skylights, with dimensions that fit into the existing structural framework, helps provide increased natural lighting. These multiple light sources, filtered by translucent partitions, wrap the space in kinetic lighting that contributes to the theatricality of the experiment.

All images by Félix Michaud Courtesy of Jean Verville Architecte

#Jean Verville Architecte #Félix Michaud #Quebec #Québec #Canada #Featured #Saint-Jérôme #Les Entreprises d’électricité E.G.

[anniversary-magazine]

Villa AM — A Contemporary Saudi Arabian Home by Mesura

Mies van der Rohe said, "Architecture is the will of an epoch translated into space; living, changing, new. Not yesterday, not tomorrow, only today can be given form." In Jeddah, the historic centre of Saudi Arabia, something is changing in today's climate. As the city moves towards rapid modernization, its architectural values – which protect the area's distinct culture – are starting to disintegrate.

Giving shape to today's Jeddah is a complex endeavour. Its character is rooted in the past, while the mind is set towards the future. Villa AM results from a five-year working process with our client, who introduced us to a fantastic city, community and architecture. Taking local culture and climate as a tool to seek new spatial relationships, the house aims to answer the will of a changing today.

A changing community, a changing set of values for domestic architecture

Architecture is part of the land it lives in. In Jeddah, this story goes back to the beginning of the country. The city is the historic heart of a modernizing Saudi Arabia, characterized by a vast amount of vernacular architecture based on an ancient desert and Arabian culture — enriched by the presence of the sea and harbour. Contrary to popular assumptions, Jeddah is not Dubai.

To design in Jeddah's complexity, it's vital to understand its traditions, values, and beliefs. Traditionally, the Arabian home functions as a private sanctuary and a social, semi-public space, which constitutes an interesting paradox still defining most local architecture today. Villa AM carefully balances its design between preserving the core of this ancient building tradition and manifesting the mindset we find in the community of Jeddah today. The house thus aims to rethink a traditional way of living.

The exterior as an extension of the home and architecture acting as a passive system

In Jeddah, summers are long, sweltering, muggy, and arid, while winters are short, warm, dry, and windy. Aside from their social function, the exterior spaces of Arabian buildings (patios and rooftops) have an essential role in mitigating climatic factors. Since its foundation, the vernacular architecture in Jeddah has used its materials, courtyards and openings in an eco-efficient sense, creating cool and comfortable indoor home environments. Villa AM, in this sense, is no different. 

The house looks for shade and breezes of air, which in Jeddah comes from the mythic East-North wind swaying about 10m above the ground. To get to that wind, the house's second floor drops to the back, creating a second patio looking out onto the city and the sunset to the West while alleviating the shape of the volume. Meanwhile, an outside passageway downstairs generates natural cooling across the ground floor.

Privacy and hospitality at home: architecture as a tool to shift perspectives and expectations

The programme of Villa AM reflects the habitual segmentation between guests, family and staff. Therefore, we traditionally find U-shaped houses in Jeddah, built around a shared courtyard and house the family on one side and guests on the other, doubling the installations needed for each of them. These are the remnants of an Arabian culture prone to visual privacy, which explains the particular placement and sizes of doors, windows and openings; the control of building heights and balconies; the movement fluxes that vary according to the house user.

Villa AM incorporates the family's openness, generosity and contemporary mindset. Though privacy is still present in the home's programme, the house uses its L-shaped form to create a closer relationship between family and guest by blurring its spatial limits and using the garden as in-between areas to connect the two visually. The house thus becomes a fluid entity — an initial step towards a new kind of domestic architecture in Jeddah.

The intensity of the ephemeral: light as an active agent determining architectural atmospheres

Light in Jeddah hits differently. Sunrays easily find their way through the windows and hit the house's interiors in a very daunting manner. Throughout the day, the place is capable of displaying multiple colour palettes. With sunrise and dusk being the most memorable moments, light in Jeddah goes from the coldness of the first hours to the heat and brightness of noon, finishing with still, peachy-coloured skies when the sun is setting.

Villa AM has been designed so that these three moments can be experienced through climate site-specific architectural decisions. The house is a continuous game of walls setting shade on the suitable space at the right time. Windows face all four directions, allowing the interiors to receive multiple types of lighting during the day, while exterior passageways are determined by high walls that create shadowed paths, enabling convenient use of these spaces even in the heat. Therefore, light becomes an active agent shaping the usability and mood of Villa AM.

Villa AM: a five-year-long cultural conversation and a journey into the unknown

Villa AM's grandeur doesn't only lay in its outcome. Memorable moments and crucial decisions have been taken in the process, shaping the house into what it looks like today. In 2016, when the project landed in our studio. We did not know what to expect: a challenging distance, a unique culture, and an inability to immediately overview what was going on. Again, designing for the unknown made so much sense.

Reflecting on the unfolding of the house, one can't help but ponder on the bond forged after five years of ongoing conversations with our client. A client who has allowed us to investigate without judgment and to make mistakes, helping us to understand and work on his willingness to create something different and unique that fit a set of contemporary values that we, as humans and architects, support as well.

Along the way, lessons, visions, and vernacular know-how have determined the project in unexpected and challenging ways. Differences encountered were seen as advantages, learning how to decode them and turn our vision into a reality that met the client's expectations, considered the land's culture and traditions, and aligned with the nation's vision of contemporaneity. Villa AM isn't only an architectural statement; it's a journey of discovery and audacity into the unknown.

All images by Marina Denisova

Words & images Courtesy of Mesura

#Mesura #Saudi Arabia #Jeddah #Residence #Architecture #Marina Denisova #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

Holland Hill Residence by Right Angle Studio

Home to a young family of three, the architectural qualities of this apartment provided the perfect opportunity to amplify its spatial attributes. Surrounded by lush greenery at the top of a serene hill, the unit's open-plan is conceptualized like an en-suite lounge conducive to intimate conversations.

Anchored at the heart of the space is the wooden portal, an identifying feature of the studio.

The high ceilings are further accentuated within the same portal through greenery underneath a skylight. The movable pivot screens allowed the flexibility to isolate the inner room, granting privacy for respective users.

Walls are preserved to exhibit a series of art pieces collected by the clients over their years of travelling. The resultant design achieves an understated mood that blends seamlessly, creating a distinctly subtle residence without the interruption from the outside world.

All images by Marc Tan – Studio Periphery

#Right Angle Studio #Marc Tan #Studio Periphery #Singapore #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

Fragility of Nature

'As the slightly colder and darker temps of August crept in, the Swedes slowly faded out of their coastal campings. We raised a tent by the fragility of nature with wind, soil, rain, and stones. A home furnished far from functionality and flexibility. A construction calculated by beauty'. 

In the borderland where seemingly functional furniture meets an artist’s vision, what arises? An art and design sphere standing far from the increasingly modern and technological world. Lucas Morten explores the fragility of being human, emotional, and imperfect. He wishes to leave a human trace on its objects like brushstrokes, deeply scarring through a painting. Within the grey zone between art and design, the artist creates multi-dimensional works of art to experience through sight and physical interaction. His aim is neither to create a comfortable piece of furniture nor a one-dimensional painting hanging on a wall but an object in-between: limited edition, handmade objects with unique features.

Lucas Morten is a self-taught maker and artist from a small coastal town in western Sweden, where he also has his atelier. Informed by the avant-garde and brutalism of the midcentury, his creative approach explores novel design ideas, away from classic Swedish traditions.

Design by Lucas Morten Creative direction, words & images by Tyra-Stina Wilhelmsson

#Lucas Morten #Tyra-Stina Wilhelmsson #Sweden #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

A New York City Loft Space Designed for a Female-Founded Hedge Found Company – Q&A With Interior Designer Christina Loucks

Could you name and describe the area where the space is located?

The office is located in an area of Manhattan called Flatiron situated right off of Madison Square Park.

Could you describe the architectural style of the space and when was it built? 

The style was mainly empty with the exception of the construction finishes of the walls, finished wide plank oak floors, commercial lighting, glass office and conference room walls, bathrooms and a kitchenette. The building is pre-war, being built in 1912 and has 12 stories and 9 units. 

Who works in this space?

The company residing in the space is a female-founded hedge fund.

What convinced you to work on this project? 

A gorgeous, empty NYC loft, a female-founded company, and an opportunity to build out and furnish the space with more of a residential feel and a feminine nod was very enticing.

Could you describe the layout of the space? 

The space is one entire floor. It has the founders office, a flexible use space/ desk area for 2, 3 additional offices, a reception area, a traders area, conference room, and kitchen/dining area. The loft office space is roughly 3000 square feet.

What was the biggest challenge you faced to design this space? How long did it take? 

This project started the February before Covid hit, that was the main challenge dealing with overseas production for a lot of the pieces, working away from the space, getting Millwork pieces fabricated locally during random shutdowns, furniture arriving with the wrong fabric, millwork arriving incorrectly built. The list goes on. But in the end, it all came out lovely but took beyond a year to complete. 

What type of colours did you decide to use in this space and why?

I wanted to stay in natural tones and curved lines as much as possible being that it is a female-founded company. I wanted it to feel naturally feminine but not too clearly that way. There are some fun shapes in the carpet, the sofa, chairs, built-ins, millwork. 

What type of materials did you decide to use in this space and why? 

We used a lot of natural white oak to help create a seamless flow through the space. I'm very inspired by the Scandinavian / European design where spaces feel so lovely, open and seamless with free-flowing oak pieces.  For the upholstery, we used a lot of natural boucles and wool. 

What were your sources of inspiration to design and decorate this space? 

Soft, wooden palettes and curves.

If you would have to describe this space in one sentence, what would it be? 

A warm, inviting rich space with smooth and seamless details that move effortlessly through the space evoking an awareness of detail but not overly residential or professional. 

What type of atmosphere did you want to create and how did you achieve it?

The intention was to have a smooth and seamless flow with nods to feminine details and natural elements that ease one moment to the next throughout the space. 

Images by Nicole Franzen Interior Design by Christina Loucks

#Christina Loucks #Nicole Franzen #New York #New York City #Manhattan #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

Azabu Residence by Norm Architects

The Azabu Residence is the fourth case study project of Japanese furniture brand Karimoku Case Study and is conceived in close collaboration between Norm Architects and Keiji Ashizawa Design.

The latest additions to the collection of fine wooden furniture pieces are created as part of this complete renovation project and have its native setting in a luxury apartment built-in 1988, tucked away in the quiet Nishi-Azabu residential district of Tokyo.

The apartment was built on a spacious and airy plot, rarely seen in Tokyo today. The greenery surrounding the entrance is meticulously maintained by gardeners and welcomes visitors in a harmonious way that establishes a sense of calm and connection to nature in the middle of the city. Similar to the previous Case Study projects, the Azabu apartment combines Japanese and Scandinavian design principles and aesthetics. A shared belief in the use of natural materials and a muted colour palette lies as the foundation of the project, characterized by the focus on tactile, soft-minimal and timeless qualities. 

In contrast to the previous Case Study projects such as the Kinuta Terrace Apartments in Tokyo and the Archipelago House in Sweden, the Azabu Residence Project is completed in muted, dark tones enhancing and embracing the intimacy of shadows. The spacious but dimly lit apartment is a cozy, human-centric and protective dwelling away from the noise of the city. A calm and embracing interior for contemplation and private family life. 

“Regardless of the dark tones used to unify the space, the beauty of this home stands out in the morning and early afternoon, with the contrast of direct sunlight peeking into the space, and at night, when the ambiance of the space is created by an elaborate artificial light scheme.” — Keiji Ashizawa 

One of the core elements of the Case Study brand is the study of design- and architectural history and the inspiration for many of the projects have been sparked by field trips to architectural sites, gardens, parks and temples in both Japan and Denmark. 

The Azabu project was designed shortly after a trip to the Americas and the inspiration of mid-century American and Brazilian modernism is evident in the use of warm dark natural materials and wooden wall panelling, lush carpets and tactile upholstery, in the case translated into a new and dark version of a Japanese-Scandinavian interior. 

“With the use of stone, dark wood and textured textiles, the interior plays on inspiration from mid-century American Modernism. The living areas with a small bar niche, the open plan kitchen, lush carpets and bulky comfortable furniture draws inspiration from an array of elements – from the Japanese inspired Schindler House in Los Angles to the extravagant New York apartments featured in the series Mad Men” — Frederik Werner, Norm Architects

“Another main narrative in the interior design is inspired by the well-known Japanese book by Jun’ichirō Tanizaki, “In Praise of Shadows”, which was recommended to us by Keiji Ashizawa on one of our first field trips in Japan. In Scandinavia, we often work with bright white walls to enhance daylight, but through the writings of Jun’ichirō Tanizaki, we understood the value of dark, dim places and chose to celebrate and enhance the nature of the site, which resulted in a dark monochrome material palette.” — Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen, Norm Architects 

“Over discussions with Norm Architects, we agreed that the unique ambiance of this building should be incorporated in the interior design.“ — Keiji Ashizawa 

Images by Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen Courtesy of Norm Architects

#Norm Architects #Karimoku #Keiji Ashizama #Tokyo #Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen #Japan #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

The Still Life House

The Still Life House is a 2400 square foot private residence situated by the beachside neighbourhood, Kits Point in Vancouver British Columbia.

The project was an authentic collaboration between the homeowners, David Bergman and Daniel Ching, principal of Untitled design agency.

Bergman is the creative director of an international fashion label, and has worked in the creative direction of several luxury brands. Naturally, Bergman has sound knowledge in various realms of design, including architecture and interior design. Bergman and his wife, Linda Bergman, who is an executive at another international fashion label, relocated from Sweden to Canada with their two young daughters.

A character home reimagined — was the design intent of this renovation project. As this house had traditional architectural forms, we wanted to reinterpret how a “modern” renovation can suit a character home. In fact, during the early stages of the project, the homeowners were after an unapologetically modern interior, which proved to be challenging. The dialogue between the intrinsic architecture of the home and a true-to-form modern interior was disjointed. As the interiors were developed, a softer interior language came to light. While a strong language of clean lines was maintained, the material palette was steeped in old-world traditions — which became a key design element.

The color and material palette was a practice of restraint; unifying materials were carried through the house. Traditional materials such as the limestone counters and fireplace hearth, the fir wood floors, and oak millwork — all stayed true to form. Materials were purposefully unadorned and allowed to patina over time. It was a contemplated effort to forego typical modern-engineered materials, to balance the bones of a character home, and the minimalism of the modern design.

Conducive to an old-world material palette, several pieces of vintage furniture collected by Bergman are found throughout the house. Collectible pieces include items by Nakashima, Hans Wegner, Charlotte Perriand, Poul Kjaerholm, Jorgen Kastholm, Preben Fabricius, Norman Cherner, Jasper Morrison, Serge Mouille, and Isamu Noguchi.

Newer classics such as the Minotaure Armchair by Pierre Augustin Rose, and the Extrasoft sofa by Piero Lissoni were added to the homeowner’s collection.

Bespoke furniture was designed specifically for this project’s environment; which is an important element for interiors by Untitled design agency. The dining table, desks, beds, and night tables were developed specifically for this project. This project-specific furniture design philosophy was adopted from design masters whose pieces are found throughout this project. Untitled design agency’s furniture line often introduces furniture designs from interior projects into the product lineup. Bergman’s art collection seen throughout the house includes pieces by Inez and Vinoodh, Roberta Bailey, Larry Clark, Alasdair McClellan, Wolfgang Tillmans, Elisabeth Peyton. Eddie Wrey, Robert Rauschenberg, Casper Sejersen, and Sterling Ruby. 

All images by Ema Peter

#David Bergman #Daniel Ching #Untitled Design Agency #Ema Peter #Vancouver #British Columbia #Canada #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

A Series of Christo and Jeanne-Claude's "L'Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped" — Captured by Photographer Lorenzo Zandri

London-based photographer Lorenzo Zandri has captured a series of photographs of the art installation L'Arc de Triomphe, Wrapped, by Christo and Jeanne-Claude in Paris.

"In 1961, three years after they met in Paris, Christo and Jeanne-Claude began creating works of art in public spaces. One of their projects was to wrap a public building. When he arrived in Paris, Christo rented a small room near the Arc de Triomphe and had been attracted by the monument ever since. In 1962, he made a photomontage of the Arc de Triomphe wrapped, seen from the Avenue Foch and, in 1988, a collage." 60 years later, after more than ten years the artist has passed away, his team has concretized the project as per his wishes.

This impressive project has been realized in collaboration with Centre des Monuments Nationaux, the City of Paris and the Centre Pompidou. The temporary artwork is on view until October 3, 2021. 

All images by Lorenzo Zandri

#Christo et Jeanne-Claude #Arc de Triomphe #Paris #Featured #Lorenzo Zandri

[anniversary-magazine]

Residence Alma by Atelier Barda — A discreet transformation

Atelier Barda, an architectural firm renowned for its constructive thinking in approaching every design, introduces Residence Alma, a full renovation project of a residential triplex in Montreal’s Little Italy district. Commissioned by a private client of Atelier Barda, the program focused on redeveloping an existing commercial ground floor space, as well as consolidating two upper floor apartments in order to design a single-family residence. In approaching the mixed-use, early 20th century building, Atelier Barda focused on three archetype design principles: the loggia, the passageway, and the colonnade.

“The main idea was to preserve the existing façade, and to use the envelope to deflect from what is happening inside,” explain the architects. “We tried to respect the past, while making slight additions to delineate old from new, including rounded brick columns that subtly contrast with the angular architecture of the original building.”

A blank slate

In respecting the external façade of the building, Atelier Barda made only subtle changes to existing elements in order to transition the building from the past to the present. The architects completely gutted the interior of the existing building, embarking on a redesign from scratch. A portion of the commercial space was preserved, yet halved in size, and cuts were made to the side of the existing façade in order to create new openings for entry to the residential space, and for a new garage. The original entrance to the upper-level apartments was then relocated from the main commercial boulevard to the residential side street, providing the client with more discreet access to the residence. At the rear of the building, two external balconies were enclosed by making a slight extension of the brick façade, using brick patterns that match the original construction.

Thinking from inside of the box

To maximize its vision, while adhering to strict building codes and regulations, Atelier Barda embarked on an interior design plan that compressed previous ceiling heights, established new floor plates, and created a fourth level in the form of a rooftop mezzanine. On the second level of the building, the firm created a visitor’s suite comprised of three bedrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, a living room, and two bathrooms. The third level serves as the principle living quarters of the client, and Atelier Barda hollowed out its 1,700 sq. ft. volume to create an open-air courtyard. The 200 sq. ft. courtyard is enclosed in glass internally and divides the living room area from the master bedroom. Extending vertically, the courtyard is exposed to nature’s elements from above, and features lush vegetation, seating areas, and a Japanese soaking tub.

“The courtyard really articulates the space, while creating a very private outdoor area for the client,” say the architects. “It also allowed us to bring abundant light into the core of the building.”

 The courtyard contributes to more than 1,000 sq. ft. of overall outdoor space, including two very private rooftop terraces that serve as bookends for a newly-constructed 400 sq. ft. mezzanine level. Positioned on the rooftop in such a way that it is unseen from street level, the fully-enclosed mezzanine houses the main kitchen and dining room of the residence, opening onto a vegetable garden terrace at one end, and an outdoor dining and lounging terrace at the other.

“The client likes to entertain, so we decided to include the kitchen and dining room on the mezzanine level because of the access it provides to the two terraces,” they explain. “The interior of the mezzanine provides easy access to the terraces, while externally they are separated by the opening of the internal courtyard, which provides views down into the third level.”

Soft and demure

‘Soft and demure’ characterizes the interior of the residence, infusing subtle hints of luxury into the living spaces through the use of clean lines and minute detailing. The firm worked closely with suppliers to develop specific finishes, such as the oiled oak hardwood floors of the residence, ensuring a delicate balance of warmth and color that resonates throughout the space. Devoid of ornamentation and overdesign, Atelier Barda’s minimalist approach uses soft contrasts between white walls and black trimmings, as well as abundant use of curtains for a more domestic scale.

Atelier Barda worked closely with local artisans to design customized furnishings that complete the residence. The firm also worked with stone workers to custom-build black terrazzo vanities and washbasins for the master bathroom. The bathroom’s black terrazzo floors extend seamlessly into the shower, providing a visual continuity that is replicated in the extension of the main bedroom’s wooden floors to the panelling of its dressing area.

“Within the walls of the original façade, we have built this sort of Italian ‘baldacchino’ that sits atop an older structure,” conclude the architects. “It’s a very discreet intervention, but filled with complex technical design features and transformations that are only revealed inside the envelope.”

Short Film: Direction, camera & editing by Pierre-Alexandre Guay

Direction of photography by Alex Lesage

Photography: Alex Lesage Courtesy of Atelier Barda

#Atelier Barda #Alex Lesage #Montreal #Little Italy #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

The French Stone House by Theo Coutanceau Domini

The architecture of stone, extracted from the ground, pre-existing to man, does not last only thanks to its robustness but because it irrevocably belongs to the passage of time.

One of the most certain things about its beauty is that it does not entirely coincide with its time. Nothing that pre-existed is squared or straight, but the proportions are correct. The lack of adornment and opulence of these old dwellings underline the archaism of their materials. In our eyes, it reveals a particular propensity to conceive architecture as an experience of destitution, a confrontation with the essential.

Imprinted by years of occupation, the intrinsic beauty of graying woods, oxidized pieces, and eroded stone projects us into their incomplete and fragmented part. Sitting on the ground, with the wooden planks under us, the smell of smoke in the hearth, raindrops on the roof, wood crackling in the fire, urban noises somewhere in the outside world... Here, the influence of the place suggests things differently.

The place is not reduced to pleasure and aesthetic emotion. It encourages us to re-examine our own notion of comfort and exposes that luxury lies more in our way of living in a space rather than in the appearance of precious materials.

It does not express itself through what is spectacular but gives rise to astonishment by allowing at each moment the possibility of telling its own spectacle.

The material environment ignores any hierarchy between materials. Each element is as far as possible from its original state and frees itself from over-exposure. The structure exhibits the beauty of raw things. Only bare necessities persist, furnished without excess.

No chairs. Only a monastic table in solid walnut, a bench, a white sheet stretched to show films, and leather seats on the floor. The place does not respond to domestic life such as one can find in a traditional house. The comfort of these spaces lies in their serenity, in their charm. Not intimidating, neither dripping with luxury. Instead, the space is very peaceful, almost friendly.

Bathed in an indirect, exhausted, almost precarious light allowing nuances, the intensity of the illumination is forced to retain the beauty of the shadow.

Gaps of space, never tightly closed, exasperate curiosity and give rise to a feeling of immensity even if the place is small.

This environment, revealed in its most primitive state, introduces us to a new way of reacting, experiencing and understanding what surrounds us. A form of supportive experience within ourselves that shapes our taste for the contemplative and makes us live each moment more intensely.

Spaces designed to think, converse, and inhabit.

All images by Theo Coutanceau Domini

#Theo Coutanceau Domini #Bordeaux #France #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

Scorpios Mykonos by Annabell Kutucu and Lambs&Lions

A collaborative design project between interior designer and stylist Annabell Kutucu and Lambs and Lions. In coordination with K-Studio Architects, Scorpios Mykonos is a multifarious space built and designed to be in communion with both the local culture and its idyllic surroundings.

A collaborative design project between interior designer and stylist Annabell Kutucu and Lambs and Lions. In coordination with K-Studio Architects, Scorpios Mykonos is a multifarious space built and designed to be in communion with both the local culture and its idyllic surroundings.

The luxury 6000 square-meter beach property comprises several harmonious spaces, from its central weather-worn stone house to a bazaar, an interior bar and 200-seat open-air Mediterranean restaurant, and multiple terraces, cabanas, event areas, and beach facilities. 

Throughout, the color palette is made up of neutral, earthen hues set against classic, white-washed stone accents and organic textures and materials such as wood, rattan, hemp, and cotton. 

A testament to the guiding principle of the project — the cultural concept of 'Agora,' or, 'gathering place' — Scorpios Mykonos is a celebration of traditional craftsmanship, 1960s Greek glamour, and sensuous, laid-back bohemian design.

All images by Steve Herud Courtesy of Annabell Kutucu

#Annabell Kutucu #Mykonos #Greece #Lambs and Lions #K-Studio Architects #Steve Herud #Featured

[anniversary-magazine]

Loft De La Gauchetière by Future Simple Studio

The Rue de la Gauchetière project restores a lofty apartment in the Old Port of Montreal. Located in a hundred year-old heritage building called ‘Unity’, it seeks to integrate nature and family living into a space that is decisively urban while celebrating its industrial origins. 

The design is manifested through a simple concept: a box inside the box. Two glazed wooden volumes are thoughtfully arranged within the concrete structure and programmed as bedrooms.

They are used to organize the residential functions. Kitchen, living, dining, study, reading, and exercise areas take life on their periphery in a fluid and open plan.

At once object and architecture, the bedroom is crafted as a bespoke kit of parts including everything from ceiling panels and mullions, to flooring and furniture. A series of automated blinds—both sheer and blackout—transform it from a private room to a floating lantern.

Inspired by the original character of the building, the loft’s material palette is elemental and tactile; walnut plywood echoes the earth tones of the brick walls, warm greys pick up on the rough concrete, pervasive glass and mirrors emphasize the airiness of the space while the ample addition of greenery adds a dream-like, natural dimension.

Rue de la Gauchetière loft offers a way to live outside the norm, allowing its inhabitants to experience the benefits of togetherness, flexibility and timeless beauty inspired by its unconventional floor plan and design.

All images by Félix Michaud

Words & Images courtesy of Future Simple Studio

#Future Simple Studio #Félix Michaud #Montréal #Montreal #Featured #Canada

[anniversary-magazine]

Masa Presents: The Last Tenant — an Exhibition Curated by Mario García Torres

MASA is delighted to present The Last Tenant, the gallery’s fourth exhibition, which is curated by the artist Mario Garcia Torres. The exhibition features leading artists and designers including Ana Pellicer, Carlos Amorales, Milena Muzquiz, Jose Dávila, Rooms, Ruben Ortiz Torres, Jorge Yázpik, Héctor Esrawe, and others.

Little information is available from the modern white house at Palmas 1145 in Mexico City. But while entering it, it's not difficult to start imagining its past lives, from daily routines to celebrations and singular moments. One starts to connect little details that transpire from the materials used, and left behind in it. The exhibition now installed in it pretends to appeal precisely at the required time it takes for those images and stories to pop up in our minds.

The Last Tenant March 18 - May 9, 2021

Av. Paseo de las Palmas 1145, Lomas de Chapultepec V Secc. 11000 Ciudad de Mexico

“After an extraordinary year that has largely questioned our lives' rhythms and values, this experience seeks a deeper understanding of our artist's and designers' practices; hence the cross-temporal presentation of objects. If some works demand the audience to stop for a moment to be considered, others have been themselves waiting for us to catch up with them, and make them pertinent to our time. In that sense, The Last Tenant, becomes the space for which these manifestations work and hope for” — Mario Garcia Torres

Exhibiting artists

Carlos Amorales Leticia Arroyo Geles Cabrera Jose Dávila Héctor Esrawe EWE

Marie Lund

Theo Michael

Adeline de Monseignat Rubén Ortiz Torres Ana Pellicer

Rooms

Josef Strau

Brian Thoreen

Jorge Yázpik

About MASA

MASA is a nomadic gallery, blurring the line between art and design. To show, to curate, to write, to build, to question, to provoke, to educate, to learn: these are the desires. With digital, physical, and conceptual presence, MASA challenges convention and presents ideas on a global stage. With an effort to open up conversation and dialogue around material culture, MASA curates exhibitions offering work with integrity, direction, and value.

MASA was founded in Mexico City by a curator and creative director Age Salajõe, designers Héctor Esrawe and Brian Thoreen, along with collectors Roberto Diaz Sesma and Isaac Bissu. Their backgrounds in art, design, and architecture are reflected in MASA’s presentation of design at its boundaries.

About Mario García Torres

Mario Garcia Torres (b. 1975, Monclova, Mexico) is an artist currently living in Mexico City. Some of the most important solo exhibitions of his work have been held at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (2007), Kunsthalle Zürich (2008), Berkeley Art Museum, Berkeley (2009), Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid (2010); Museo MADRE, Naples (2013), Perez Art Museum, Miami (2015) and TBA21, Vienna (2016). He has also participated in such international exhibitions as the Sharjah Biennial 13, Tamawuj, Emirates (2017), Manifesta, the Berlin Biennale (2014); the Mercosul Biennial, Porto Alegre, Brazil (2013); Documenta 13, Kassel, Germany (2012); the São Paulo Bienal (2010); and the Venice Biennale (2007). Recently he pre- sented his solo exhibitions at Neugerreimschneider, Berlin and Franco Noero, Torino. In 2018 his survey shows Illusion Brough Me Here took place at Walker Art Center, Minneapolis. Then in 2019 at WIELS in Brussels. On March 11, Mario opened his solo show at MARCO (Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Monterrey).

Thanks to Kurimanzutto, Galeria OMR, House of Gaga, Travesia Cuatro & Galeria Agustina Ferreyra.

Curated by Mario García Torres All images by Tom de Peyret Courtesy of MASA

#MASA #The Last Tenant #Mario Garcia Torres #Age Salajoe #Ana Pellicer #Carlos Amorales #Milena Muzquiz #Jose Davila #Rooms #Ruben Ortiz Torres #Jorge Yazpik #Hector Esrawe #Geles Cabrera #Leticia Arroyo #Ewe Studio #Marie Lund #Theo Michael #Adeline de Monseignat #Josef Strau #Brian Thoreen #Tom de Peyret #Kurimanzutto #Galeria OMR #House of Gaga #Traversia Cuatro #Galeria Augustina Ferreyra #Mexico City #Featured