Graftlab ultramodern Hamburg installation

Nothing says ‘this room is special’ like setting it apart both in terms of material choice and physical space. For residents of this ultra-modern loft, it is clear that the kitchen is the top priority; it is the core area around which the rest of the layout (also by the designers and architects at GraftLab) revolves.

Continue reading below
Our Featured Videos
Graftlab ultramodern Hamburg shelf detail
Graftlab ultramodern Hamburg kitchen

In plan, the angles of the kitchen define the adjacent spaces. In perspective, the ‘island kitchen’ is both a unique built-in all-in-one unit within the center of the condo and a semi-freestanding partition that helps divide the adjacent living and dining areas that wrap around it.

Graftlab ultramodern Hamburg walnut wood
Graftlab ultramodern Hamburg

Clad in high-grade wood veneer – in turn cut by thin and criss-crossing lines of black – the kitchen encourages movement through and around it, each perspective different from the last. Shelves and counters are also sliced out of the main volume, making it seem almost as if the space was hewn from a solid block of wood.

Graftlab ultramodern Hamburg built in couch

A small bathroom toilet space is also carved into the core kitchen box, accessed from the opposite site of the main cooking and food preparation spaces and hidden nicely in a cove that is almost invisible when closed (its door being made of the same sheets of plywood veneer that cover the rest of the zone). Across the way, and not for the shy, sits a bathtub which is surrounded by stone which also connects back into the flooring of the kitchen area – a strange but interesting design choice.

Graftlab ultramodern Hamburg built in bookcase

“As with all renovations, the existing building services and structure had to be incorporated in the overall design. This was achieved through the use of a free-standing walnut unit which functions as the heart of the apartment. This unit incorporates the kitchen, bathroom and dresser, taking advantage of its proximity to the building services. Sections are cut out of the unit to allow natural light to penetrate deep into the loft.”

Graftlab ultramodern Hamburg all in one unit

“Flanking the walnut core are service walls contrasted in white. These walls house the rest of the functional elements of the space, embedded within niches so that the remaining space can be used flexibly for working, relaxation, bathing and sleeping. Further flexibility is achieved through the use of ceiling-high, room-dividing sliding walls that allow the relationship of public and private space within the loft to be configured as needed. The sliding walls, when retracted, are completely concealed within the service walls.”