Simplicity at its best - materials and a plan that provide a place to raise a family
Taiwan’s KOA Apartment, designed by Marty Chou Architecture provides an open plan for a young family. This project is a tribute to Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s “less is more.”
The 90 sq. m floor area contains hidden cabinets and a set of deep-recessed windows on four of its sides. When the recessed windows are closed they turn into private sleeping areas.
A 3.5-meter countertop is positioned at the heart of the space which it also serves as a dining table. The abstract countertop and furniture are clay, a stone slab and woodblock. The KOA Apartment is a simple space, yet one that has been treated as sculpture.
“At this stage of our lives, spaces for sleeping, seating, eating, and sanitary activities can be stripped down to the bare essentials. We wish to have more space for our children to run freely, as well as to have a large table that everyone can gather around to spend time together. If possible, we wish to live in a modern gallery of sorts; simple, calm, and filled with light, in which the spaces are left to the imagination as we fill them with life for the years to come.”
Location: Taipei, Taiwan
Completed: 2020
Floor area: 90 sq. m
Architects: Marty Chou Architecture
Photography by Kyle Yu Photography, courtesy of Marty Chou Architecture