Bigkis is the act of binding. In Tagalog, the word can refer to something used to bind or encircle, as well as a bundle formed by tying several separate elements together. Figuratively, it can also mean a bond, union, or unity. The meanings move from the physical act of joining things together to the connection […]
Luminous Apartment: Shining in Luxurious Decor and Touches
For a thing to be luminous, it should either have a naturally generated light source or a chemical reaction happening inside it. But the Luminous Apartment in Moscow defied this scientific principle and managed to glow all on its own.
Second-Time’s a Charm
The home is a 108 square meter one-bedroom contemporary flat filled with exquisite materials and decor. Combining neutral and earth tones, metallic accents, glossy finishes, and warm lighting, the space shines with luxurious touches.
Design company Alexander Tischler began construction in 2020 and curated this space for their second-time businesswoman client. Earning her trust from a similar project, the company experimented a little and added more details this time.
Led by chief designer Karen Karapetian, the design team proactively estimated the costs prior to project’s completion. As they took almost the same design process as before, the company prevented a budget shortage during the renovation process. After two years, the apartment was ready to become a home.
The Glimmer of Open Spaces
As you enter the apartment, you get a glimpse of the bathroom since its door aligns directly in the entryway. This houses the spa area with a shower, a whirlpool tub, and a sauna. It is also the lone space with a vertical layout to act as the prominent middle part between the major areas.
On the left wing, the Luminous Apartment has an open floor planFloor PlanA scaled drawing showing a building's layout as seen from above, as if sliced horizontally at roughly waist height. It maps rooms, walls, doors, windows, circulation, and fixed furniture, helpingGo to Floor Plan Glossary for living, dining, and kitchen. Occupying the largest portion of the space, the team maximized it by adding a tiny workspace and an electric fireplace. Placed against the fixed four-panel windows of the living room is a transforming light leather L-shaped sofa. The abstract rug and artwork additionally give color to the mainly white space.
On the other hand, the kitchen includes a translucent upper module, a built-in hob, and a six-seater marble dining table. The white side cabinets also serve as a tidy casing for appliances to make the area less cluttered. Across the kitchen countertop is the dedicated workspace with a view overlooking Moscow.
Sitting in the middle is the TV in a pan-and-tilt mount bracket to make it viewable from both the sofa and dining table. The cabinet where the TV is mounted indicates the partition of the dining and living areas. Its floor-to-ceiling design also gives an illusion of raised ceilings and functionally hides the horizontal beam cutting the windows.
Shining in Private
The layout originally had two bedrooms which the architects combined into a single, generous master’s suite. The chesterfield bed, sitting against the bouclé wall panels, faces the west to enjoy a relaxing sunset view. Apart from the cityscape, a remote controlled hanging TV lowered from the ceiling hatch provides additional entertainment. It also has a rotating function so the owner can watch from it anywhere in the room.
On the left side of the bed is the bathroom with a white artificial stone countertop and a transparent glass door. The design team used cabinets again to hide the piping system.
Across the bed is a sitting area with a taupe sofa and a spacious workspace, providing the bedroom additional functions other than for relaxation. For the same purpose for storage, both cabinets from near the sofa and desk conceal the supporting pylons.
The bedroom also includes glass elements in the form of closet mirrors and Glass Italia bedside tables for adder shimmer.
All the Luminous Elements
For its most interesting parts, the Alexander Tischler design team made sure that luminosity is evident in every part of the Luminous Apartment.
Starting from the floors, the use of Atlas Concorde porcelain stoneware for the tiles already made the interior eye-catching. But with the addition of brass grout, the apartment turned this commonly overlooked element into a new visual interest. Achieving a fragmented look, the design team deliberately cute the tiles to fully mirror the space’s glass-like theme. This fragmentation is also evident in the living room’s cabinet and in the bedroom’s headboard wall design.
Even furniture was not exempted from having a glistening finish as they are coated with refined glass. From the living room cabinet to the entire kitchen, the open space reflects the natural light perfectly.
To add luster, metallic coats play a huge role in incorporating color while maintaining the shiny motif. This is seen in the gold dining set bases, centerpieces, kitchen sockets, and Brand van Egmond chandelier. Bronze accents the upper module frosted glass, door panels and frames, and bedside cabinets.
As for the lighting, the thoughtful integration of natural onyx made the Luminous Apartment well-lit even if it’s bathed with natural light. The vertical arrangement of this stone element aligns with the direction of flames in the electric fireplace, creating a visual harmony. The fireplace runs on water and illuminates the artificial steam, keeping the air clean and humid.
Onyx is also present in the private bathroom backlit panel covering the entire wall. And with its transparent door, it provides another interesting view from the bed.
Alexander Tischler’s execution of this design redefined how luminosity becomes achievable even with less artificial light. And with Luminous Apartment, the design company’s brimming design vision translates into a luxury found in curated visual elements.
Photo by Evgenii Kulibaba
Read more: A Bachelor’s Apartment with A Glass Home Office
Two sketches of Singapore connect BluPrint Editor in Chief Paulo G. Alcazaren’s personal and professional history with Shared Ground: ArchitectureArchitectureThe art and science of designing and constructing buildings, structures, and spaces that are functional, safe, and aesthetically pleasing. It encompasses the planning, design, materials, and techniques used to createGo to Architecture Glossary of Care, Culture, […]
In a way, designers are the modern-day soothsayers and prophets. They design for the future, predicting how a room, a house, a building or a whole city will be used by people. They foresee how users will interact with a space, conjure exact shades of colors to elicit specific behavior and arrange furniture to build […]
Art and furniture are often selected separately, yet their relationship can shape how a room looks and feels. The collaboration between Hooga and Galerie Joaquin explores how these elements can work together, bringing contemporary artworks into furnished residential settings at Hooga’s showroom in Uptown Mall, Bonifacio Global City. For Hooga, which curates furniture, lighting, and […]
How can better-planned cities create the conditions for more creative, livable, and resilient urban environments? “Makati Urban Recipes for a City’s Survival,” a colloquium held at the Ayala Museum on September 15, brought together architects and practitioners from the fields of urbanism and the creative economy to discuss how design, planning, and collaboration can address […]
The fourth Manila Interior DesignInterior DesignThe discipline of planning and shaping interior spaces for function, comfort, safety, and beauty. It covers layout, lighting, materials, finishes, furniture, and color, and in the Philippines is a licensedGo to Interior Design Glossary Summit (MIDS) brought together more than 300 delegates for four days of conversations, exhibitions, and design […]
Frequently Asked Questions
The Luminous Apartment is a 108-square-meter, one-bedroom contemporary flat in Moscow designed by Alexander Tischler, with Karen Karapetian as chief designer. Construction began in 2020 for a returning businesswoman client, and the project combines neutral and earth tones, metallic accents, glossy finishes, and warm lighting.
The design team used Atlas Concorde porcelain stoneware tiles with brass grout cut in a fragmented, glass-like pattern, glass-coated furniture, gold and bronze metallic accents, and natural onyx. Glass elements such as closet mirrors and Glass Italia bedside tables add further shimmer.
A spa bathroom with shower, whirlpool tub, and sauna aligns with the entryway and acts as the central space between the major areas. The left wing holds an open floor plan for living, dining, and kitchen, and the original two bedrooms were combined into one master suite.
Natural onyx is arranged vertically to align with the flames of an electric fireplace that runs on water and illuminates artificial steam. Onyx also forms a backlit panel across the private bathroom wall, helping the apartment stay well lit with less artificial light.
Cabinetry hides structural and service elements. The floor-to-ceiling living room TV cabinet conceals a horizontal beam cutting the windows and gives an illusion of raised ceilings, while bedroom cabinets conceal piping and supporting pylons. The TV cabinet also partitions the living and dining areas.
Read the issues.
Collect the volumes.
Recommended Video
Tap to Unmute
Unmute
0:00
0:00