two-level apartment with total area of ​​186 m2 Elena Dobrovolskaya

Passing the gallery

Text: Olga Vologdina

A photo: Alexey Reydalov

Architect: Elena Dobrovolskaya

Magazine: N11 (78) 2003

Home to Kiev, the owners of this apartment rarely come, more and more travel around the world. But they barely come back, they immediately gather a noisy and cheerful company of friends. Olena Dobrovolskaya invented for them a welcoming, Ukrainian-friendly space ...Idea and layout “The main idea was this: the most open, free first floor,” says Elena. “The owners love to receive guests, to organize parties, cocktails. Actually, they bought it for this purpose. The small isolated rooms were not good for them, I combined them into one large open studio, and the second floor adds more air and light to it. Initially, the apartment was single-level, during construction they decided to join the attic, which had been empty for a long time. at an angle so that the staircase does not crush the space.) The upper level was landscaped, the ceilings and the roof were strengthened. Now on the attic floor there are two bedrooms, a bathroom and a bathroom. Closer, I realized that the most natural and closest thing to them is really minimalism, it is functional, understandable, adequate ... and yet too correct, sterile. I think my temperamental, cheerful customers would soon get bored with it. It became obvious that the interior should be undoubtedly functional and at the same time warm, sunny, colorful. "Decor "Еще во время первого знакомства ребята много и вдохновенно рассказывали о своих поездках и путешествиях в экзотические страны. Квартира путешественников, почему бы нет? В таком случае мы развязывали себе руки, могли поэкспериментировать с фактурами, цветом. Decor весь этнический, его не много, и в основном это аксессуары. Большинство предметов африканского происхождения, есть и из Азии. Некоторые вещи - антикварные, как, например, индонезийский резной шкаф начала XIX века с очень красивыми вставками- изразцами или бронзовая голова, привезенная из Танзании".Elena Dobrovolskaya: "In this project, I tried to beat the theme of travel that was close and comprehensible to customers. Hence, the ethnic decor. But it was not this that I thought was the main thing. I wanted to create a feeling of home. At home alive, welcoming, hospitable. I hope I did it."