The owners of this classic, pre-war apartment are two young filmmakers seeking to transform their small apartment into an ordered, elegant space filled with light.

To achieve a sense of expansiveness, Specht Harpman created one Big Room from two smaller rooms. The key to the design was to reconfigure the two cubicle-type spaces so that the window wall could read as continuous. By seeing the four windows connected in series, one reads an array, rather than two centered compositions. This optical trick allows people to perceive the space as much larger than it actually is.

The Big Room is modulated by the insertion of a cabinetry “liner.” The large sliding translucent wall slips into its “case” to allow for openness and slides closed to create spatial division between living and sleeping areas. The custom cherry cabinetry liner deforms to become seating areas at the windows, a case for the sliding door, storage for books, a desk, and display areas. Within the simple shell of the space, the liner allows for specificity of use and continuity of materials.