Located in Pioneer Square, one of Seattle’s oldest neighborhoods, the design of this 850-square-foot condo celebrates its history through a study in contrasts: a historic building with a modern interior, small washrooms within an open floor plan, and a play between light and dark materials.
Once the loft had been cleared of the residue of its previous remodels, a small footprint of program was placed along the perimeter of the northeast corner in order to maximize open space.
The design of the loft took inspiration from the client and his desire for an open plan that could morph to accommodate his creative process. As an entrepreneur based in New York City, he wanted a space in his hometown of Seattle that would act as a sanctuary of reprieve as well as an incubator for personal projects.
With the intention of keeping the loft not only throughout his life, but also as a space to be inherited by his family, it became important for the design to be as timeless and neutral as possible. A palette of monochromatic light and dark materials were used to elicit this quality, creating richness through a tactile nuance.
In an effort to maximize space, the bathroom program was broken up into four separate rooms: washroom, shower, toilet, and sauna. The bathrooms are completely clad in charred shou sugi ban with a floor of black cement tiles, their intimateness acting as a contrast to the openness and lightness of the outer palette.
To celebrate the beautifully worn existing materials, the new design used highly detailed millwork to juxtapose old and new.
In the client’s chaotic world as a technology CEO – an existence spent in the ephemeral landscape of the internet – the design was a considered architectural experience created to highlight its physical, sensorial elements.
Drapery was instituted for privacy, but also for the auditory sound of moving fabric across a track; The size of the interior doors, as well as their handles, was exaggerated to honor the simple act of touching, moving, and transitioning through space; The bathroom threshold is marked by an offset of tile paired with a four-inch step to alter the ground plane, again encouraging attentive presence to the physical structures of the home.
