Wengs House A Compact Apartment in Taiwan Does More with Less

2019-03-14 14:33

Architects and interior designers are well aware that an apartment’s layout is critical in optimizing the available space, ensuring smooth circulation and reflecting the occupier’s requirements, especially when there is a shortage of square metres. So when Taiwanese interior design studio 2BOOKS space design was commissioned by Mr. Weng to renovate a compact apartment in the country’s capital, Taipei, the first order of business was to modify the existing layout in order to accommodate their client’s lifestyle. As important, the designers have conjured a décor of contemporary elegance and minimalist sensibility that nevertheless channels Mr. Weng’s childhood. Previously, the apartment’s dining and kitchen areas had been downsized in order to accommodate three bedrooms and two bathrooms. This not only meant that the refrigerator stood in the dining room because it didn’t fit in the kitchen, its presence there meant that there was no space for a four-person dining table. By eliminating one of the bathrooms and slightly shrinking two of the bedrooms, the designers have addressed both grievances by sufficiently enlarging the two areas, as well as creating additional space in the living room.

建筑师和室内设计师都清楚，公寓的布局对于优化可用空间、确保流通顺畅和反映占用者的要求至关重要，特别是在缺少平方米的情况下。因此，当台湾室内设计工作室2 BOOKS的空间设计由翁先生委托在中国首都台北翻新一套紧凑型公寓时，首先要做的是修改现有的布局，以适应客户的生活方式。同样重要的是，设计师们召唤出了当代优雅和极简主义情感的象征，尽管如此，这也是翁先生童年的通道。此前，这套公寓的餐厅和厨房面积已经缩小，以便容纳三间卧室和两间浴室。这不仅意味着冰箱站在餐厅，因为它不适合厨房，它的存在，那里意味着没有空间，一个四人餐桌。通过取消其中一间浴室和略微缩小两间卧室，设计师们解决了双方的不满，充分扩大了这两个区域，并创造了更多的空间，在客厅。

Photo by moooten studio.

莫恩工作室的照片。

Photo by moooten studio.

莫恩工作室的照片。

Photo by moooten studio.

莫恩工作室的照片。

Photo by moooten studio.

莫恩工作室的照片。

Photo by moooten studio.

莫恩工作室的照片。

Photo by moooten studio.

莫恩工作室的照片。

In order to enhance the sense of spaciousness, an essential attribute for such a small-sized apartment, the designers have eschewed decorations and superfluous furnishings in favour of a minimalist aesthetic of simple lines and uncluttered spaces. For the same reason, sliding panels separate the kitchen from the open-plan dining living area allowing the two areas to be perceived as one when opened. Meanwhile, the use of translucent glass allows natural light from the kitchen windows to illuminate the dining area even when the doors are slid shut. In consultation with the new owner the selected materials reference the environment he grew up in thus bestowing upon the renovated flat a sense of familiarity. White and grey two-toned walls and cement flooring brandish the design’s simplicity, pine plywood conveys a familiar residential atmosphere, while exposed brickwork delineates the study area. The small selection of furniture that has been chosen, such as the light blue sofa, the minimalist red console and the distressed wooden crate used as a coffee table, further accentuate the apartment’s personality without undermining the décor’s subdued ambience, proving that simplicity and character are not contradictory concepts in interior design.

为了增强这种小型公寓的基本属性-空间感，设计师们避开了装饰和多余的家具，而选择了简约线条和整洁空间的极简美学。出于同样的原因，滑动面板将厨房与开放式餐饮起居区分开，允许两个区域在打开时被视为一体。同时，半透明玻璃的使用允许从厨房窗户的自然光照亮餐厅，即使门是滑动关闭。在与新业主协商后，选定的材料参考了他成长的环境，从而赋予了装修后的公寓一种熟悉的感觉。白色和灰色的双色调墙壁和水泥地板挥舞设计的简单，松木胶合板传达了熟悉的居住气氛，而暴露的砖块划定了研究区域。选择的家具种类不多，比如浅蓝色沙发、极简式红色控制台和用作咖啡桌的破旧木箱，这些都进一步突显了公寓的个性，同时又不损害装饰的压抑氛围，证明简洁和个性在室内设计中并不矛盾。