Elii 097 · Yojigen Poketto


097 · Yojigen Poketto
“4D Pocket”
Complete refurbishment of an apartment in Madrid

REPORT
Refurbishment of an apartment in Madrid
Complete refurbishment of an apartment in an old building in downtown Madrid.

A dual strategy is applied to this project:

Firstly, the floor plan arrangement is based on an L-shaped service band that integrates the access, wet areas, storage areas and leisure spaces. This frees up the main area, which opens up to the windows and balconies to create a brightly lit atmosphere. The intimate areas are therefore secluded and sheltered from view from the entrance.

On the other hand, the apartment is arranged into two levels: the level at the elevation of the entrance and the main room, plus a second level, 90 centimetres higher up, extending beyond the kitchen surface, where the leisure area and the bathroom are located. The two elevations not only allow different atmospheres to be arranged, but also integrate ‘additional’ functions in the house, such as a deep bathtub in the bathroom, a storage area under the bed, part of the facilities, etc, thus optimising every cubit metre of the house. Secret trapdoors extend the storage space in the overhead areas. A portable stepladder/furniture item is used to overcome the difference in elevation, add storage spaces and double as small grandstands in the living room.

All in all, the proposal gains the corner of the building, floods it with natural lighting and views to the street, both the deep horizon and the street-level perspective, from the overhead areas. Openings in the furniture extend the indoor cross views from the upper area.

The various elevations sport different finishes that produce specific atmospheres. Light colours are used on the walls of the main area to provide as much light as possible. The floor is made of linoleum. The bedroom area has wood finishes and includes a projector on the roof that projects onto a screen from the bed. The bathroom walls, floor and bathtub have a mirror finish to fill this indoor area with light and to augment the feeling of depth.

CREDITS
Architects: elii – Uriel Fogué, Eva Gil, Carlos Palacios
Architect coordinating the project: elii – Ana López
Team: elii – Eduardo Castillo, Lucía Fernández
Joinery:  Alfredo Merino Caldas
Construction: Aniceto Jiménez
Developers: Diana Díaz, Luis Arenas
Models: Carlos Cañete, Ana López, Lucía Fernández
Photography:  ImagenSubliminal (Miguel de Guzmán + Rocío Romero) www.imagensubliminal.com

BASIC DATA
Surface: 33.60 m2
Date: 2017
Location: Madrid

 

 

Architects: elii

eliimolinos
www.elii.es
info@elii.es
+34 911157658
c/ Maestro Arbós 3
28045 Madrid, SPAIN

elii carries out its professional activity in the following fields: Infrastructures, Urban Development, Public Spaces, Individual and Collective housing, Offices and Work Centres, Industrial Buildings, Ephemeral Architecture and Design of Museum Exhibitions and collaboration with artists. Elii covers all stages of the project, from the design phase to project management, working both in the public and private sectors, in Spain and Abroad. Founded in 2006 and based in the centre of Madrid, its founding partners and current directors are the architects Uriel Fogué Herreros, Eva Gil Lopesino and Carlos Palacios Rodriguez, all of whom have previously worked in architectural firms of international renown. They currently combine their work at elii with teaching (in several Spanish universities of international renown) and editorial work (UHF magazine). Their work and articles have appeared in specialized publications and exhibitions, having obtained recognition and awards for outstanding performance, amongst which are the FAD Opinion Award (2005), or the awards received from the Official College of Architects of Madrid “a la Obra Bien Hecha”(2006), “a la Obra de los Arquitectos” (2011), and “COAM Award” (2013) or the JustMad Award to Emergent Creativity (2013). They have been amongst those selected to appear in the “Arquia Próxima” catalogue (also issued by the Official College of Architects of Madrid) in its 2006-207, 2008-2009, 2010-2011 issues, having been recognized in this last one as one of the 10 most relevant teams of young architects in the region. They have also taken part in the “Madrid 100% Arquitectura II” (2011), catalogue and Itinerant International Exhibition, where one of their works was considered one of the top 100 by the Official College of Architects of Madrid. They were also similarly distinguished in the XII Buenos Aires International Biennial Architecture Exhibition (2011), recently selected as one of the “100 architects of the year 2012” in the exhibition for the KIA Korean Institute of Architects and the UIA International Union of Architects in Seoul (2012) and as a part of the exhibition FreshLatino 2 (2013). Elii is a member of the “Creadores de Madrid” and “FreshMadrid” archives.