Art-Apart, Berlin

The 130-square-meter apartment, located on the first floor of a typical 19th-century Berlin residential building, belongs to an artist who does not live in the city permanently.

The Swiss studio Raum404 was commissioned to design an apartment that would serve as a private home on the one hand, but could also be opened up for exhibitions on the other.

In response, the architects kept the apartment’s interior as spacious and minimalist as possible by concealing many elements behind white doors.

“When the cabinets are closed, the room is completely white, abstract, and neutral,” architect Oscar Buson explained to Dezeen. “This makes the relationship between the artwork and the viewer as direct as possible.”

The architects removed several walls to create a large open space at the front of the building that can serve as an exhibition area.

The 3.5-meter-high ceilings were retained, as were four floor-to-ceiling windows and a door leading to a small balcony with handmade cement tiles.

“We decided to emphasize the classic character of the apartment,” said Buson. “This type of ‘Hôtel particulier’ exhibition space is completely lacking in an otherwise very alternative city like Berlin.”

At one end of this space is a simple kitchen with white cabinets and a black granite niche. The only freestanding piece of furniture is a granite kitchen island with triangular steel legs that can be easily moved.

In the entryway, additional storage spaces and a bathroom are concealed behind white panels. One of these panels also serves as the door to the bathroom, whose floor is covered with black tiles, while the walls and fixtures are also black.

Olivia Mull, Dezeen Magazin, London, 2017

mandate type: direct mandate

period: 2014-2017

program: logement et espace d'exposition 

size: 130m2

project lead: Oscar Buson

architecture : Raum404

construction site supervision : Malte Wittenberg