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Claire-obscur Apartment

Bureau Fraai

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ensuite cabinet in apartment - Flare Department
ensuite cabinet and kitchen in office - Flare Department
hallway and space dividing wall cabinet in office - Flare Department
ensuite cabinet in apartment - Flare Department

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Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
JURY VOTES
Large Apartment
5.79
6.63
6.62
5.14
6.05
Amber Feijen
Amber Feijen Spatial and Concept Designer at 5AM
6
6
5
5.5
5.63
Michela Falcone
Michela Falcone Architect / Educator at Experimental Architecture / BNU University
Very elegant material/colour palett...
5
6.5
6.5
5
5.75
Qi Wei
Qi Wei Member, Urban Renewal Professional Committee, Vanke Shanghai Area at Vanke Group
6
7
6
5
6
Claudia Mazzucato
Claudia Mazzucato Associate Designer and Architect at THDP
6.67
6.31
7.1
5.81
6.47
Bernhard Kurz
Bernhard Kurz Founder at IFUB*
6
7
7
5
6.25
Melissa Amarelo
Melissa Amarelo Cofounder and Creative Director at Toi Toi Toi Creative Studio
5
7
6.5
5
5.88
Massimiliano Tosetto
Massimiliano Tosetto Managing Director at Lodes
The colour palette is just perfect...
6
6.2
8
5
6.3
Lisa Torreggiani
Lisa Torreggiani Partner at Monkeydu
6.3
7
6.8
5
6.28
Mao Hua
Mao Hua Founder at EK Design
5
6
5.5
5
5.38
Karen El Asmar
Karen El Asmar Architect & Interaction Designer at Tech
6.5
7
7
5
6.38
Britt Berden
Britt Berden Senior Creative Strategist at FranklinTill
6
7
7
5
6.25
Simal Yesiltepe
Simal Yesiltepe Founder and Creative Director at Simal Yes Studio
Loved the different tones of colour...
6
7
6
5
6
Bob Chen
Bob Chen Founder at Bob Chen Design Office
4.7
5.14
5.06
4.97
4.97
Astin le Clercq
Astin le Clercq Cofounder and Design Director at Modem
5
7
8
5
6.25
Sophie van Winden
Sophie van Winden Director at Owl Design
Lovely use of colour !...
6
7
8
5
6.5
Woody Yao
Woody Yao Director at Zaha Hadid Design
6.5
7
6.5
6
6.5
Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
GRAND JURY VOTES
Shortlisted - Large Apartment of the Year
6.85
8.33
8.05
6.59
7.46
Simon Saint
Simon Saint Principal and Global Residential Sector Leader at Woods Bagot
6.67
7.38
7.31
7.1
7.12
Claudio Pironi
Claudio Pironi CEO at Claudio Pironi & Partners
5.74
9
9
5.09
7.21
Katerina Kavazi
Katerina Kavazi Founder at K. Kavazi Interior Design Studio
9.24
9.45
8.38
9.09
9.04
Jocelyne Sacre
Jocelyne Sacre Design Strategist at Consultant
Love the renovation and the space f...
5.74
7.5
7.5
5.09
6.46
Client
Schönhaus
Floor area
511 ㎡
Completion
2021
Social Media
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Steel door and Window frame
Lighting
Finishes
Finishes

In the Museum Square neighbourhood in the city centre of Amsterdam Bureau Fraai completed a conversion and upgrade of a monumental building into high-end apartments and office spaces. The architects took their inspiration from the Claire-obscur technique applied by the painter Gerard van Honthorst (after whom the street ‘Honthorststraat’ is named) who was a gifted follower of the famous ‘claire-obscur’ painter Caravaggio. 

This characteristic building and once beautiful monumental interior with a total of 4 storeys and a souterrain had lost its charm throughout the time and lack of ownership and maintenance. Both the new owner and municipality wanted this building to be restored and upgraded with full respect and care for all the monumental characteristics, details and quality. Therefor all the existing characteristics and details were well documented and photographed to ensure they would be restored accordingly. 

Office spaces are created on the ground floor and in the souterrain. On the upper floors spacious high-end apartments are created by respecting the typical existing building layout with a front and rear room separated by an open ensuite cabinet.

 For the new interior design Bureau Fraai took the approach of ‘respecting the old and embracing the new’ by combining the characteristic features of the existing interior with contemporary design features and interventions. They took the ‘claire-obscur’ technique as their main inspiration. Claire- obscur is a technique from painting in which the light-dark contrasts are portrayed more strongly than they often are in reality. This produces a dramatic effect that accentuates three-dimensional shapes. 

Bureau Fraai designed these strong light-dark contrasts within the apartments and offices by introducing new strong unicoloured interior interventions opposing the light grey basic colour. The harmony of these quite dramatic interventions with the refined existing characteristics resulted in strong and unique ‘claire-obscur’ identities for each and every floor.