Market Street Penthouse: A Duplex Penthouse with A “Sky Zone” and Blue-Grey Interiors

This beautiful duplex penthouse is located in San Francisco, California with 3,200 SF in size. Market Street Penthouse is a 2009 project by Joel Sanders Architect that works together with Winder Gibson Architect. This duplex penthouse has a “sky zone” and blue-grey interiors. The design challenge for this project is to take advantage of its diagonal downtown views. The architect also divided this duplex penthouse into two living strips.

Design

The dramatic diagonal downtown views around this duplex penthouse that are compromised by discontinuous groupings of conventional double-hung windows become the design challenge for this project. The design strategy is to unify these punched openings visually within a “sky zone”. This zone is a recessed linear slot that wraps the apartment perimeter while the blue-grey interiors blend with the actual skyline.

Materials

This duplex penthouse is divided into two living strips programmatically. These strips run parallel to the window wall of the building. There is a darker inner band that lined with natural materials such as banquettes upholstered in deep blue mohair and walnut paneling. This band can define the second-floor pool/guest room, stairwell, and entry.

There is also a bright outer zone that lit by windows and it defines a kitchen/dining area on the first floor and the double-height corner living/media room, and the master bedroom suite. It is a neutral palette of grey and white synthetic materials with a pretty contrast that focuses on the “sky zone” to frame city views. While the interior apertures can frame the views between these contrasting areas inside this duplex penthouse.

Photographer: Rien Van Rijthoven