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There’s more to Paris than Haussmann-style living! That was Kelly and Jules’ motivation in carrying through the complete remodeling of what is actually like a small townhouse carved out of a group of 1930s blond-brick buildings, once used as artists’ studios. The idiosyncratic abode spans 30 square meters on the ground floor and 40 square meters above. “We bought it from an elderly couple,” says Kelly. “The interior was quite old-fashioned, with carpets everywhere and lots of partitions. The first floor was just a small corridor adjoining a bedroom, so it felt like a tiny space. We tore it all down, leaving only the outside walls and the WCs unmoved.”
The project took six months to complete, a small but mighty undertaking, as lead architect Agathe Lavaud confirms: “The kitchen was upstairs, so we moved it down to the first floor. The opposite was true of the bathroom. It seemed more logical to have the living area on the first floor and the private areas, including the bedrooms and the bathroom and WC, upstairs.
The project is articulated around a number of bold gestures, all of which could individually inject bravura and uniqueness into a lesser project. To wit, the custom-designed metal spiral staircase skillfully structures the space, prompting questions on the delineation between art and hyper-functionality. The staircase is clad in forest green, “a shade we just love, along with blue,” explains Kelly. “Cooler shades, yes, but more soothing than red or orange. And I think it goes better with wood.”
Wood – or more specifically, cork – was used profusely in the kitchen to counterbalance the coldness of steel and concrete, the Volta Architecture agency having developed a method for covering furniture out of the natural material. “In addition to heightened aesthetics and material contrast compared to traditional wood, cork has the added advantage of only cutting into the bark of the tree, thus preserving the tree itself,” explains Agathe Lavaud.
“I give Kelly and Jules kudos for never giving up on these somewhat experimental – and pricier – projects. They preferred to cut back on certain items, dispensing, for example, with waxed concrete on the floor. Instead, they kept the screed as it was, instilling pigments to make it beige rather than gray before varnishing it. The effect is strikingly similar.”
