Arsenal, and it was light.

Since the entrance hall is the first room you see entering the apartment it is quite important. A lot of people tend to not care too much, since you mainly walk through, but never spend a lot of time there. Although a first impression walking into an apartment is almost as important as the one you get meeting new people. And in my opinion it should reflect the owners personality.  In that particular case the owner of the apartment is, as mentioned before, an American photographer based in Vienna. Naturally she isn't only interested in Photography, but collects all kinds of Art. To showcase parts of her collection in the entrance hall I chose to really focus on the pictures and photos. And what better way to direct the attention to the art as with great lighting. Some focused spots will light up the pictures on the walls while a vintage lamp highlights the center table that will show parts of the African collection the photographer brought home from one of her many travels.

Arsenal, as time goes by.

Months have past since my last post, but work at the apartment at Arsenal has of course developed a lot. Let's start with the entrance hall, for which I promised a surprise treat for the floor. To remember you how it looked like before here's a photo.

After we ripped out the cupboards that lined the hall it looked quite messy. But after a new white coat of paint for the vaulted ceiling and after painting limegreen sectors that are inspired by classical wall treatments it was time for the biggest change. Since the two main rooms still have great original Viennese parquet flooring this very used wooden board floor stood out. But not in a positive way. So we got some English floor paint and just painted the floor boards in a very dark chocolate brown. The result was just amazing. The wooden structure is still visible, but the new colour gave the room a totally elegant feel, that is brightend up by the fresh limegreen of the walls. But see for yourself.

Arsenal, tearing down and ripping out

First step at the apartment in Arsenal was to get rid of the loft in the livingroom and the cupboards the lined up in the entrance. It's good to have storage, but since the apartment now hosts only one person we can reduce that a bit. Especially if we get a great open entrance hall as the result. Once the loft was removed the livingroom as well opened up and there is even light shining all the way into the entrance hall now. What a change. Next step is painting the walls and a suprise treat for the entrance floor!

A little surprise awaited us after the cabinets were gone. The children had painted the walls about 25 years ago, before the cabinets were built. One little handprint will be preserved for the future and included in the design.

Arsenal, what I had to deal with

Coming back to the apartment itself I have to say it was in quite a used state. But after beeing home for a family of 5 for about 25 years that didn't surprise me. Lacking rooms it was even necessary to build a loft in the living room, which was home for one of the daughters for several years. 

But walking into the apartment for the first time my mind already blocked out all the old furniture an dirty walls and started to feel that these rooms could be something amazing. It is not often that you have rooms with a height of 5 meters and huge vaulted ceilings. But just look at the photos to get a feeling for what was the state I had to deal with.

Arsenal, a brief introduction

A project that started already some months ago is the redesign of an apartment of an american photographer who is a close friend of mine. Now that her children are all grown up and have moved out she felt like starting a new chapter of living there.

The apartment is located in Vienna's Arsenal, which is a former military complex built between 1848 and 1856. The particular building was used as officer's quarters, and now is used as apartments while other parts of the complex now host a military history museum, the rehearsal stage of the Burgtheater and a lot of more apartments. Just arriving at the complex and entering the building is already amazing. As soon as you step inside the building it is totally calm, although you are right next to a huge train station. The courtyard is incredibly peaceful and full of trees and flowers and the staircases and hallways are, due to their former use, totally oversized. But see for yourself.