b-ing Interiors
Casa Burés Loft
Kirsten Schwalgien Design
German Interior designer Kirsten Schwalgien who has been resident in Barcelona for many years recently completed the design of a ground floor loft style residential unit within the iconic Casa Burés (see B-Guided #69), a masterpiece of Modernista architecture. The specific challenge from the interior design viewpoint was to conceive a living space with no views outwards, given that the space in completely interior. Nevertheless the designer has managed to create a series of fluid spaces with differing degrees of privacy using transparent glass and opaque partitions. The following description was supplied by the Kristen Schwalgien Studio.
In a former life the 240 sq.m. ground floor space was where the horse drawn carriages of the time were housed and where agricultural products were stored. Now, it has been transformed into a two-bedroom loft with a versatile and open plan configuration that maintains the iconic elements of its past, as required by the Barcelona Department of Architectural Heritage, but also reflecting Schwalgien’s own philosophy. The new design maintains the original wooden door carefully restored and all the beams and pillars remain on display, uncovered, supporting the ceiling (vaulted) and conserving the typical "Volta Catalana". A line of industrial windows ensures insulation and allows natural light, so important in modernist architectural constructions, to enter.
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The common element in all of Kristen Schwalgien’s design projects is the customisation; Almost all furniture is custom designed to match the client’s lifestyle and personal aesthetic, as well as the context of the space. Schwalgien works with natural materials as much as possible, with an emphasis on highlighting her inherent unique characteristics, a process that results in what she calls "unconventional beauty." In the LoftBuresQ kitchen, for example, the smoky chestnut cabinets are veneered and treated to maintain the original tactile quality of the wood and emphasise its unique timber grain. Another example of bespoke design can be found with the dining room table, which features an untreated raw vintage brass top, each leg celebrates the main materials used in the loft design (tulipier veneer and smoked chestnut veneer).
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Experimenting with innovative finishes, the design alternates cold and warm, bright and rough, soft and hard textures to design spaces that stimulate the senses: throughout the loft, the open-pore varnished veneer creates a successful contrast with the original brick walls seen, while on the floor it combines microcement with parquet.
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Schwalgien’s many years of working experience (in excess of 16 years in yacht design) is testament to her technical prowess and meticulous attention to detail. The cutting-edge technology used stands out, such as the biodynamic LED system integrated into the vaulted ceiling, the window blinds and curtains that provide subtle lighting throughout the loft as well as the intelligent home technology system that receives information from various sensors to adapt the light, colour and brightness according to the time of day.
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Schwalgien's subversive and alternative design approach consistently maximises the space, privacy and aesthetics through clever design details such as concealed sliding doors and a carefully concealed air conditioning system. In the light-filled patio, an air duct is completely covered by a vertical garden; and the master bedroom is separated from the living room by a box-shaped wooden structure that also houses a dressing room and a guest bathroom. Other bold and safe features of LoftBuresQ include the artwork, sourced and commissioned by Kristen Schwalgien Design, or the neon sign on the kitchen wall, which reads "May the bridges I burn light the way." burn light the way).
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