Square footage comes at a premium in Tel Aviv, as it does in New York and many other global cities, so designers Raanan Stern and Shany Tal are particularly well adept at making the most of what they have. But the team have turned space management into an art form with this this tiny artist studio in the heart of the city.
The studio has been carefully measured to creatively store an artist’s special collection of 2D objects. The collection, made up of pieces from the 1940s to today, was organized according to groups, sizes and artistic connections in four different proportions.
Every cell, cupboard and drawer, all of which are finished in a lightweight birch with just a dusting of a clear coating that doesn’t cover up the wood’s natural grain, has been crafted to fit these proportions.
(Related post: Foot-stomped compost furniture from Israel)
Designed as a showcase and a space that can be shared with fellow artists, the studio is deliberately modular, which allows the artist to shift furniture around, open draws or even remove them, depending on the activity du jour.
The real treat happens when the drawers made from recycled shipping pallets are opened and the collection inside is revealed. Or when the pieces are displayed with sticks that are pushed through holes in the exterior surface of the drawers and cells.
Like the closets and other organizational units, white birch has been used for the flooring. The light color helps to aggrandize the 200 square foot studio apartment while giving it a clean, bright finish.
Lastly, a folding bed is built into the back of the study door, an ideal accoutrement that allows the artist to embrace those sudden fits of inspiration that last well into the night.
A stellar example of creative space management that is not material intensive, this Tel Aviv studio also acts as a private gallery that can be shared with other creatives.
:: Designboom
Author: Tafline Laylin
As a tour leader who led “eco-friendly” camping trips throughout North America, Tafline soon realized that she was instead leaving behind a trail of gas fumes, plastic bottles and Pringles. In fact, wherever she traveled – whether it was Viet Nam or South Africa or England – it became clear how inefficiently the mandate to re-think our consumer culture is reaching the general public. Born in Iran, raised in South Africa and the United States, she currently splits her time between Africa and the Middle East. Tafline can be reached at tafline (at) greenprophet (dot) com.
Liked the apartment, everything is maintained in the right way. I´m sure students will enjoy staying there.