In contrast to Barcelona’s old town, the ordered streets of Barcelona’s ‘uptown’ have a residential, tree-lined ambiance. In one of them, we found an apartment dating from the 1960s but with original, suelo hidráulico, or beautiful patterned flooring that is characteristic of so many apartments in the city.
Rather than drastically altering the layout, Arquitectura G saw this project as ‘imposing’ elements onto the existing one, with the aim of creating a contemporary home that didn’t destroy its historical value. They did this by installing non-supporting walls that, in terms of height, fall short of the existing ceiling, letting light and continuity run from front to back façade.
Taking advantage of large windows at the rear of the apartment (which look out onto one of Barcelona’s unique ‘interior patios’) a social area was created here. An ‘island’ was installed for the kitchen and TV area. In front of it, a cross-placed wall, where the sofa has been put, breaks the geometry of the pre-existing flooring, and adds a dash of artfulness to the space.
The bedrooms occupy the front of the apartment, where a bathroom as been installed in a central nucleus. We chose materials that complement the existing floor tiles, decontextualizing them with vertical panels of block colour that echo the tiles’ tones and proportions.
Developer: Casas Lautes
Design Architect: Arquitectura-G
Construction Manager: Obras Diaz
Equity Partner: Cadmus Investment Group
Sales & Marketing: Carolina Marti
Photos: Jose Hevia