barcelona – Interior Design inspirations by Indywiduum Design

I am always inspired by buildings that get their second life thanks to some ingenious new owners. This was the case with this ex-police station, transformed into a place where art and everyday life merge into one. I found it on one of my favourite home design websites, Apartment Therapy.

Now that’s a truly ecclectic space..

Police Precinct Conversion, San Francisco

Back in 1996, the architect Bruce Tomb heard about a 1950s dragnet-style police precinct coming up for public auction in San Francisco. At the time, Bruce’s brother, the artist David Tomb, and his wife, Susan Sweet, were living in New York, but hoping to come back to the Bay Area to start a family. Together they bought the building at auction—Willie Brown’s signature is right there on the deed—and Bruce redesigned the police station, envisioning a kind of compound with live/work spaces for both brothers’ families. The result of the two-year renovation is a gorgeous, light-filled space unlike any home we have seen before.

via Apartment Therapy San Francisco | House Tour: David and Susan’s Police Precinct Conversion San Francisco.

Now, I understand their choice of wall colors is not the usual one, but hey, it’s not a usual house! And the yellowish walls seem to bring even more liveliness, light and this elusive spring feeling into the apartment.

…and what other chair in the right corner but the lovely Barcelona! On the left hand side another design classic, the Eames lounge chair.

The feeling of springy freshness is further enhanced with omnipresent oversized windows, letting in extra amount of light without taking away the privacy of the residents.

Also, check out the large-scale birds paintings by one of the home-owners, David Tomb. If you like them, here is his website.

Moving further inside, the retro bedroom with a vast but suprisingly well-matching collection of painings. What makes them look so well together? Well, if you can’t (or don’t want to) color-coordinate, then theme-coordinate- most of those paintings are portraits. Also, even though the tea-green walls and poppy-red Marimekko cushions are at first sight a striking match, the cushions’ bold design invites cheeky solutions like that. Also, if it wasn’t for the contrasting accent, the room could seem rather dull. Well done!

…and whoa! Look at this small conservatory garden – what a view from the bedroom!

This house, or the concept for this house, is one of my dreams. Big space, full of art, lively and bold. One day!…

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Ahhh… if I ruled the world… this is definitely a Number One item I’d want in my flat when I finally come around to properly finishing it (one day!).

Created by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe for the German Pavilion at the 1929 Barcelona Exposition, the Barcelona chair features the pure compositional structure that now epitomizes Modern architecture.

This is one fine design masterpiece. Looking deceptively clean and pure, it is hell to make. Especially the frame, made as one piece. This, plus the high-quality, beatifully finished leather, and its place in the creme de la creme of furniture (can you actually call it furniture?…) all make up for the very hefty price tag, starting at around $4.5k for a Knoll piece (the authorized manufacturer).

And interestingly! It seems that a small war is secretly going on around the rights to the design, between the powerful Knoll, and Alphaville Design of Fremont…

Thursday, July 30, 2009 1:16:33 PM

Suit to settle whether Barcelona chair design is protected

Knoll, Alphaville duel over Mies van der Rohe works

Gary Evans — Furniture Today, July 30, 2009

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal lawsuit here will determine whether the Barcelona chair and other historic 1920s designs created by renowned designer Ludwig Mies van der Rohe are in the public domain.

The case involves contract manufacturer Knoll, which claims exclusive trademark rights to the iconic chair, and residential producer Alphaville Design of Fremont, Calif.

The companies have been in a legal battle over the chair since 2007. The court recently cleared the way for a jury trial when it denied motions from both sides to resolve the case short of trial. In the ruling, the court said, “Specifically, the trademark rights will not be valid if the designs have gone into the public domain at any time. …”

“We are delighted at the chance to present our case to a jury,” said Alphaville President David W.F. Lee. “We have no doubt that the designs long ago passed into the public domain. … We feel that historical designs should be accessible to all. If we win, the people win. If we lose, that might be the day when affordable design dies.”

via Legal Cases.

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Tag: barcelona

…so what exactly can you do with ex-police station?

My WishList – part 1 – Barcelona chair by Mies van der Rohe