The duplex Loft

This project is located on Canal Street in NYC, at the border between Soho and Tribeca. The space has beautiful views on the Hudson river, as well the entire downtown Manhattan skyline.
Our challenge was to maintain the openness of the original duplex space, while at at the same time guarantee adequate privacy for our clients, a family of four with 2 young girls. As it often happens with New York City’s client, comfortable bedrooms and bathrooms were important, but closets and storage in general had to have a central role in the project.
We achieved this by the use of continuous compact storage volumes on both the lower and the upper floor. On the lower floor, the "private" one, the introduction of a very long and generous storage volume, running north-south, helps defining three bedrooms and bathrooms, which all surround a centered family room. This room is a a dramatic double height space, which also receives the stair that connects the 2 floors, thus becoming the central, core element of the project, giving it an extremely open, loft-like feeling.
On the upper floor, entry, living room and kitchen-dining are all part of the same space. Here again, a continuous storage volume, this time running east-west, helps defining the more private Study and TV room.
The use of only 3 materials, white plaster walls, oak for both floors and millwork, and smooth concrete floor, helps creating a very luminous space, giving it an almost ethereal flair.