apartment with a total area of ​​226 m2 (St. Petersburg) Andrey Galushko

Passing the gallery

A photo: Evgeny Luchin

Text: Olga Gvozdeva

Stylist: Tatyana Bakanova, Yulia Korzhova

Project author: Andrei Galushko

Architect: Nikolay Sokolov

Magazine: N (98) 2005

White marble and black metal - these are the two materials that determined the appearance of this apartment in the historical center of St. Petersburg. For architect Andrei Galushko, it is in them that the collective image of the Petersburg interior is encrypted. The author of the project admits that he was not immediately able to find a solution, because the customers had different views on the future interior. One of them loves classics, the other prefers modern style. Fortunately, the space of an apartment in a house built at the end of the 18th century disposed of both. Already in the hall, the marble floor is surprising with an unexpected edging of ferrous metal. Even more contrasting is the closet: frosted glass doors are fixed on metal pipes, and they serve not only as decor, but also as structural elements. "For me, St. Petersburg has always been associated with blued metal. The combination of black metal and white plaster attracted me even in the interiors of the Summer Palace of Peter I with his Dutch features," says Andrei Galushko. Increased attention to the design of the hall is not accidental, because it is an important transit hub connecting the bedrooms and the ceremonial rooms (with the ceiling height of 4.2 m, this epithet is quite appropriate). The space of the guest zone is divided into two parts: on the left is the living room, on the right is the kitchen-dining room. Thanks to a considerable margin of height, the interior was complicated, making it multi-level. Thus, a mezzanine library was built in the living room, and the kitchen was raised to a high podium. This allowed not only to zone the room, but also to get a spectacular French window. The corner fireplace in the dining room became a symbol of stylistic duality. His cast-iron firebox is the same age as the house. However, the marble portal, possessing classical proportions, is striking with its laconic decor, and the facade, trimmed with sheets of blued steel, looks rather brutal. The construction is finished with a relief plaster cornice. Contrast combination of materials allowed to achieve an unexpected result. Fireplace turned out to be classic in form and modern in spirit. What was required.Andrei Galushko: “The house where the apartment is located is an architectural monument of the 18th century and is located in the center of the city. I wanted to“ run ”Petersburg into the interior, but without resorting to literal quotation, but limited to sensations ...”