ERA

Written by Omar Dahabra

Location: Kyiv, Ukraine
Year: 2025
Architects: berezen studio
Photography by: Yevhenii Avramenko

In an apartment of 45 metres, the task was to create a space for an active young man. The configuration of the space from the developer suggested creating two separate rooms - a living room with kitchen and a bedroom, but as a result of analysis and a long search for options, it was decided to create one large flowing rectangular space, the perimeter of which we filled with primary and secondary functions

We opened the dark part of the apartment, which is far from natural light, as much as possible. Glass and metal partitions let light into the bathroom and dressing room. The glossy white mosaic on the floor reflects the light and separates the living space from the technical one. This is how we created the tactile contrast between the grid of cold white tiles at the entrance and the warm industrial ash parquet

Through the entrance hall we get into a large hall consisting of a kitchen, dining room, living room, work area and bedroom. We found a location for all these functions and tried to place them as compactly as possible to save space and leave more room for the customer's activities.

Kitchen: a compact kitchen unit is located in the centre of the rectangular hall. We chose stainless steel as a modern technological material that is easy and convenient to maintain, as well as because of its ability to blend in with the surrounding space and draw as little attention as possible. The kitchen was completed by a local subcontractor.

Technical cabinet: located on the side of the kitchen unit, it hides the main appliances - a fridge, freezer, oven, washing machine, compact dishwasher and a boiler for preparing water for bathing. The upper sections of the cabinet were used for a hidden exhaust system, which is connected to a designer stainless steel exhaust pipe.

The line of the cabinet is interrupted by a passage into the corridor, and then goes into a sofa group hidden in a niche. The sofa is large enough to accommodate a guest for an overnight stay, and the cushions can be placed both lengthwise and crosswise to suit the owner's needs.

The sofa niche ends with a bookcase, from which a work console protrudes like a bridge, inside which there are three sections for storing equipment and personal belongings. The table is cantilevered on brackets that pass through it and form part of its skeleton and ‘do not touch’ the wall, creating a visual effect of floating in space. Wires from appliances can be laid through the gap between the wall and the table and connected to sockets hidden inside the table. The shelves are made of perforated metal panels for better ventilation of the equipment placed on them.

The console desk ‘cuts into’ the shelving unit on the other side, which is designed to house the customer's decor, books and other memorabilia. It was decided to arrange this part to accommodate the work area, so a hidden drawer and additional visible sockets for connecting work equipment appeared here. A shelving unit filled this space and hid the internal air conditioner, which is accessible thanks to the hinged facade.

The MDF furniture line is interrupted by a enter to the loggia, a partition wall built to maintain the geometry of the room, and then continues with a sleeping podium for a 2x2 m mattress. The undoubted advantage of this mattress size is the ability to lie down in any direction and have different feelings and experiences from the same space. On the side of the bed, the podium has a small hidden section for storing bedside items.

Above the podium, a concrete column rises to the ceiling, left by the developer. We decided to leave it as it is, as a kind of decorative element against the background of smooth, warm walls. Something raw and brutal, and as a reference to the industrial past of this area, from which you can see the concrete pillars of bridges and piers of Kyiv city.

This column was used to house a custom-made installation luminaire by a local furniture maker who made all the furniture for the project. We chose a wavy glass diffuser to create diffused light and interesting visual effects. The same glass was used for the glass-metal partition to let in light but blur the view behind it.

Most of the wall area was levelled and painted in a light, warm colour. The layer of plaster hid the untidy brickwork of the new building, as well as the inserts of plasterboard partitions, which we used to create the rectangular geometry of the large hall. The concrete ceiling was painted in the same colour, but without any levelling to preserve the texture of this plane of the room.

One of the highlights of the great hall is the perimeter closed curtain rail. This allows you to close any part of the room, meaning that any of its functions can be hidden. A kitchen unit with dirty dishes or an unmade bed, or a work area with secret documents - anything can be hidden with a slight movement of the hand.

The number and area of curtain segments can vary depending on the customer's preferences and visions as they live in the apartment.

A round dining table under the iconic PH5 chandelier and chairs by a local furniture manufacturer became the centre and dominant feature of the large hall. This shape of the table not only looks cosy in a compact space, but also allows you to sit in different directions and have the opportunity to see and perceive this space in different ways.

Despite the small area, we want to create a space that will not bore, but will be open for a long time and interesting for its owner. Text description by the architects.

Source: berezen studio
Building Contractor: Fantastic Flat
Furniture Contractor: workshop Vasylenko Volodymyr Studio
Kitchen Developers: prescona
Curtain and Sunscreen: Singaevska Studio

Omar Dahabra
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