DUPLEX TIBBAUT: A Modern Duplex with the Main Living Spaces on the Mezzanine Floor

Pin121 LinkedIn0Shares121

The requirement of the client for this 2016-2017 project is to expand the main living spaces and concentrate them on the mezzanine floor. DUPLEX TIBBAUT is a residential project by Raul Sanchez Architects located in Barcelona, Spain with 110 sqm. The interior is beautified in a modern design with the treatment of materials and colors that highlight the volume.

Overview

A mezzanine of a modest, old apartment building and two independent dwellings on top of each other on the ground floor are the starting point of this project. The mezzanine is in the heart of the Raval (Barcelona), between dividing walls. The dwellings are ins an absolute state of disrepair and neglect. The client needs to have large main living spaces that can be expanded on the ground floor with other rooms for more functional uses.

Design

The two 2-meter side squares rotated 45º over the dominant axis are inserted in the middle of the space, extruded through both floors, with vertices that overlapping without touching the original walls. One of the squares will house the office and toilet on the ground floor and the bedroom on the upper floor while the other will hold the stairs. The rotation of these squares can create the specialization of the space around it without enclosures or additional doors.

Details

The sought-after inner spatial complexity and a firm intention run parallel with the emphasis of the proposal to underplay the circulation and the different areas. The stairs are enclosed in one of the duplex volumes while their spiral pattern is used to conceal and disorient. There are also multiple axes of symmetry that enhance the spatial experience and double up the circulation, for example, the enclosed bathroom area on the upper floor, two possible exits on the ground floor, and etc.

Colors and Materials

Two extruded volumes are highlighted by the materials and colors. These volumes are coated in glossy, gold finish paint mixed with gold powder and varnished, covering and coating the existing perimeters, surrounded by white cladding. The openings and door frames are either brass or black steel, depending the kind of the area to which they give access. Both color and material code matches with the element nature.

Structure

In order to overhaul the foundation, structural intervention is required including high precision in placing the central squares and the precise cutting of the existing wooden beams for double heights and openings. The cut wooden beams lean on the lower wing of the new beams or rest on the new steel porticos to allow the clean extrusion of the squares.

System

Underfloor heating with a highly efficient air-therm system is added into this duplex. There are also three preserved existing paintings of Brazilian origin on the ground floor. These awesome paintings are the client’s reason in deciding to buy these properties and start the project with the architect.