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Lenka Míková architekti: The generous space asked for a generous approach. The apartment is located in the Old Town of Prague and with its 250 sqm extends on a full floor of a refurbished residential building from late 1920’s. The architecture of the building suggests a stylistic shift from art deco to early functionalism, which became the inspiration for our interior concept. It is based on timeless materials, refined details and a lot of bespoke and in-built furniture. The aim as well as the brief was to provide unpretentious, almost minimalistic contemporary living, striving for simplicity while offering a diversity of atmosphere and experience. The main welcome is just the clean architectural space itself filled with daylight, while at the second glance, the interior offers moments of surprise and discovery – like an advent chocolate calendar, where opening some doors leads each time to a different taste or mood… here a new materiality can be revealed - like a dark veneer wardrobe, a brass-clad bar or a whole red powder room.
The layout of the apartment is divided into three zones according to their use and intimacy. The main living area directly connected with an entry hallway represents the “social” zone. It is conceived as a light open space with large windows along the street facade, providing a relaxed feeling with soft edges and hues. On one side it is defined by a furniture wall with a fireplace, bookshelf, a hidden TV and bar, behind which the space continues to an office. On the other side it follows into a kitchen corner separated by a glass partition with sliding doors. A black kitchen counter creates a counterpart to the fireplace cladding, while a wooden counter makes a twin brother to the large bespoke dining table.
The “private” zone with bedrooms is located at the rear façade and has a more intimate character. The third “threshold” zone lies in between these two and consists of corridors and bathrooms, each with a distinct character. A dark grey corridor leads to guest and kids bedrooms and to a blue guest bathroom, that is also accessible through from the office. The colour of the corridors continues into bedrooms, integrating doors and in-built closets. In the master suite it has a lighter grey tone and wraps most of the bedroom with a wall cladding and an adjacent walk-in closet. The master bathroom has a light beige mood and enjoys daylight through a translucent glazing to the closet.
The project plays with variety of materials and colours and their (sometimes bold) that create specific interrelationships and enhance the diversity of experience. The solid wood floor of dyed oak runs through all living areas as a unifying soft texture. Its French pattern is continued in the stone floor in the kitchen with custom-cut stone tiles. The interior features altogether six different kinds of stones (four types of marble, black granite and red travertine) and also a precious root veneer and brass as specific accents.
The interior consists of many bespoke components, like all in-built furniture including washbasins, window sills, the kitchen, the large dining table and small side-tables made of the stone leftovers. We also invited Studio Dechem to collaborate on the lighting of the living area which resulted into a bespoke set of lights they designed and produced – surface lights above the sofa, suspended lights above the dining table, a brass bar above the kitchen counter and wall fixtures in the hallway, plus a little glass cabinet handle as the icing on the cake.
About studio
Lenka Míková started her own practice in 2014 after years of collecting professional experience by working and studying in Prague and Paris. Her studio Lenka Míková architects based in Prague has grown since then into a numerous team based as well as the scale and scope of their projects. The main topics are mainly reconstructions linked with interiors for both private and commercial use, residential projects of various kinds and also exhibition installations. All tasks are approached with high attentiveness and empathy not only to the clients desires and needs, but also to the given place and its context. The studio’s work has been recognized by local and international media and by several awards.
