A walnut wall and modernism
Apartment in Barcelona by Raúl Sánchez
© José Hevia
Architects love Barcelona for its Catalan Art Nouveau style, which is locally known as Modernism. Raúl Sánchez Architects have linked the charm of times gone by with contemporary design and generous shots of colour.
© José Hevia
Eixample, the famous grid-planned district, is known for its long, narrow apartment layouts. Spaces are often small, gloomy and claustrophobic. This project is completely different. The upscale block of flats from the 19th century features ornamental windows that open onto two inner courtyards. Raúl Sánchez was inspired by their artistic wood panelling for the redesign of the 170-m² apartment and created a long front panel of oak that determines the entire floor plan.
The dark, open-grained wooden wall is 21 m long and begins in the living room. Raúl Sánchez celebrates this starting point by allowing a bit of it to protrude into the space, where it is graced with a brass frame that acts as a door soffit as well. Reused ornamental tiles with patterns reminiscent of rugs form the floor here; they refer to earlier times. The colours of the tiles, which are typical of Barcelona, are accentuated by the light-toned microcement flooring that appears in the rest of the apartment.
© José Hevia
The interior wood facade is the backbone of the apartment along which the various functions have been arranged. The master bathroom, a powder room, a storage space and the kitchen are all concealed behind it. Some of these spaces, such as the entirely green kitchen, can be closed off with large doors. Other areas, such as a niche in the cloakroom, are always open.
© José Hevia
© José Hevia
At its end, the wall divides two rooms. The motif of the permanent rug reappears here, but in the form of a light-coloured oak floor. In front of these rooms, a sort of glazed loggia known as a gallery allows extensive daylight into the rooms.
© José Hevia
© José Hevia
The architects lay great value on not assigning fixed uses to some of the spaces. This means that the bedroom can also function as a communal lounge. The open room facing the inner courtyard, delimited by original blue-tinted windowpanes, has no clearly defined use. Diverse pieces of furniture, all of which were designed expressly for this project, differ in colour from the historical elements and add chromatic counterpoints.
Architecture: Raúl Sánchez
Team: Valentina Barberio, Paolo Burattini, Flavia Thalisa Gütermann, Dimitris Louizos, Albert Montilla
Location: Eixample, Barcelona (ES)
Structural engineering: Diagonal Arquitectura, Marés ingenieros
Textile design: Catalina Montaña
Completion date: 2023
Effective floor area: 170 m²
Construction costs: <300.000 €
Gallery
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