apartment Celinka I

The apartment is part of the Celinka residential project. The project is named after a character in one of the novels written by Eliška Krásnohorská, the author after whom the street the building is located on is named. The building was designed by architects Alois Malý and Karel Geisselreiter  in 1927 – 1928, with the knowledge that they themselves would be living in it. Our work on this project began in 2016, when we were asked to draw up plans for the complete refurbishment of the building.

Some of the apartment owners then contacted us with requests to design their interiors.

The assignment for this space was to create a “gentleman’s” apartment with a study and one bedroom. An area of 240 sqm across a whole floor gave us ample space to work with.

We tried to retain the most important structural elements in the original design. The ceiling had to lowered slightly, however, to hide the technological elements and to help with acoustics, but all the architecturally valuable elements were preserved.

We are confident that our design, albeit very contemporary, echoes the original atmosphere of the 1920s-1930s.

The extraordinarily good relationships among all the team members, built on trust, was key to the success of the entire project.

Mimolimit is known for its love of combining materials. For this project, we chose a more contrasting colour scheme to optically enlarge the space. The element linking the entire space is stone with different CNC-machined surface finishes in combination with wood, metallic patina and fabric – velvet, linen and silk –  as well as leather and carpeting.

This space is special in several ways, and we would like to call attention to its unique features. One is how the bedroom, dressing room and bathroom are connected and communicate spatially. Another is the “haptic floorscape” of stone and carpeting of different textures, from rough to soft, that change according to the function of the room. Another distinctive element is the predominantly stone bookcase in the television room. The cabinets with textile doors do not shrink the space but give it a lightness – they are also linked to the space via the glow created by the backlit textile. Mentioned should be made of the design covers concealing the technological elements and the deep window frames concealing the radiators and creating surfaces to display pieces of art. Other atypical elements include a Patagonia stone dining table, “candle” chandelier and bespoke design bedding.

The lighting is very specific and forms an integral and essential part of the spatial and material solution. We used light to shape the space and emphasise the properties of the materials. The ingenious placement of light sources and the possibility to adjust their intensity always allow for the creation of a beautiful atmosphere. (Even a grey space can look cosy if lit correctly.) In the living room, one of Milan Houser’s artworks, which was created for this interior, is inextricably connected to the ceiling, named Puddle ( 2020, mixed media, 200 x 240 cm) . A second work by this artist can be found in the study, Untitled (2013  paint, pigment on canvas, 120 x 220 cm).

In conclusion, we can say we are proud that we have not relied on any of our past design solutions and managed to create innovative material combinations. We were able to find unique ways to incorporate the aforementioned works of art, which form an inseparable part of the interior. 

Most importantly, however, we did not let the owner down and are grateful for his extraordinary cooperation and willingness to give us full creative freedom.