This penthouse was owned by a German client in the real estate business. He renovates properties to live in temporarily and then resells them. His request was to create a small pied-à-terre to switch off and relax.

The project was done exactly in a year and there where many joint decisions made along the process. Luckily, it was great having another client who was very willing to take risks and trusted George Kayser Studio right from the start. This is the best basis for a successful design.

Together, we agreed that the apartment should reflect the character of both the neighbourhood and the building. It is located in Gràcia, a hip area with nice little boutiques, galleries and restaurants.

We were inspired by de Art Deco style and wanted to take up the look and feel of Eileen Grey’s villa E-1027, where the use of space was very efficient and furniture became part of the architecture.

The construction is from the 1920s, and the ceiling is also a typical construction of that time in Barcelona, here called Volta Catalana. It was already open, but in the past it was usually hidden with a false ceiling. We liked the roughness of the ceiling, it goes well with the lime color of the walls and the rough oak parquet. It help in addition, to also gain some room height.

We had the opportunity to create several bespoke elements through out the apartment. Working closely with 3 carpenters, we crafted and build custom-made furniture and also embarked on designing a unique kitchen island, which was not that easy to manufacture.

To break through the wall’s white, a little bit of the green and pink hues of the facade are present in the house. The guest bathroom is in pink or red, and the main bathroom was kept in an almost silvery green.

The sun is not as extreme in this apartment, and we also wished to evoke the feeling of a vacation home in the Balearic Islands. Therefore, we also used the same lime paint which gives the walls a beautiful soft off-white with an almost furry surface which is reminiscent of the whitewashed walls of Ibiza.

A bold request from our client involved giving up a guest room in order to create generosity through a smooth transition between the zones.The result is a loft feeling with a French elegance and a certain laissez-faire.

That's one of the reasons why we decided to visually connect the bedroom with the rest of the apartment. One can also lie in bed and look at the fireplace.