Uber attic: an attic in Westphalia has been transformed by judicious remodelling into a fashionable loft with spaces defined by strong forms and simple materials. (Interior Design).In remodelling an attic in an apartment block in Herzebrock, Westphalia, Drewes + Strenge have opened it out both horizontally and vertically. Working around the existing bathroom and central public staircase, neither of which could be moved, the architects took down partitions to create a flow of space while maintaining the attic structure of wooden beams and columns and the sloping eaves. The fixed elements were used as a means of organizing different functions: bedroom and bathroom are on one side of the stairs, living rooms on the other. The core of the apartment is the kitchen, which acts as a hinge hinge n. A jointed or flexible device that allows the turning or pivoting of a part, such as a door or lid, on a stationary frame. hinge see hinge joint. between the two sections, opening onto the dining room through a large horizontal slot cut into the dividing wall. While bed and bathrooms are private, enclosed en·close also in·close tr.v. en·closed, en·clos·ing, en·clos·es 1. To surround on all sides; close in. 2. To fence in so as to prevent common use: enclosed the pasture. volumes, living and dining rooms have been opened up to the full extent of the roof pitch. The removal of ceilings introduced verticality and allowed insertion of a mezzanine gallery and study. This is reached by a spare, pleated ribbon of steel staircase. Visual connections between kitchen and bedroom and from the grand piano in the living room through to the bathroom, are deliberate and intended to enlarge perceptions of space. When required, a massive sliding door of solid oak protects the privacy of the bedroom. Materials and finishes -- epoxy resin epoxy resin (ēpok´sē,  pok´sē),n See resin, epoxy. floors, simple plastered plas·tered adj. Slang Intoxicated; drunk. plastered Adjective Slang drunk Adj. 1. walls, steel, precast concrete precast concrete Concrete cast into structural members under factory conditions and then brought to the building site. A 20th-century development, precasting increases the strength and finish durability of the member and decreases time and construction costs. and waxed oak -- are austere, and colours muted: gun-metal grey and white counterpoised coun·ter·poise n. 1. A counterbalancing weight. 2. A force or influence that balances or equally counteracts another. 3. The state of being in equilibrium. tr.v. to the warmth of wood. Furniture and fittings, such as the abstract evocation EVOCATION, French law. The act by which a judge is deprived of the cognizance of a suit over which he had jurisdiction, for the purpose of conferring on other judges the power of deciding it. This is done with us by writ of certiorari. of an antique canopy over the bed, are similarly austere, and spaces flowing one into another are defined by strong, simple forms carefully modelled by light and shadow. For their Italian clients, living in this northern European climate, the architects have managed to evoke something of their southern heritage. V.G. Architect Drewes + Strenge Architekten Project team Frank Drewes, Martin Strenge, Anja Fartmann-Quitt, Kiraten Neugebauer Photographs Christian Richters |
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