It's like stepping back in time when you drive out of the city on Bismarckstrasse or Neue Kantstrasse towards the radio tower. The upper middle-class houses, most of which were built at the end of the 19th/beginning of the 20th century, still shine in their former glory, but the interiors, the apartments, obviously cannot keep up with today's standards. The architect and interior designer Clarissa Baldini, who is also based in Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf, was commissioned to completely redesign the interior of the roof of one of these houses. The roof had been extended some time ago, so considerable modernization was necessary to meet modern aesthetics and technical requirements - but without changing the floor plan.

The complicated part of the task was to achieve the balancing act of preserving the old charm and combining high-quality modern living standards. This seems to have been achieved: Clarissa Baldini has just received the Design Award 2025 for this project. What initially appeared to be a normal commission turned out to be a challenging undertaking: A previous extension had taken place in the raised attic, which was so convoluted and angled that there were almost no right angles. The simplest solution would have been to tear everything down and start again from scratch. However, this option was not available and the existing situation had to be dealt with. Clarissa Baldini turned the tables: "I am convinced that it is often the special features, the peculiarities of the existing building, that make a project unique by focusing on these aspects and presenting them in a new light." The trick that the architect uses is therefore to reinforce the initially disruptive elements: she adds technical enclosures instead of reducing them and also adds architraves to gain space for built-in furniture. After this first decisive step, the next one can be taken: The interior design. After extensive painting work, various shades of beige are used and light reflections are skillfully created in niches and spaces. High-quality materials are used, for example, as wall coverings or furniture veneers in the bedroom, burnished brass cladding and vegan leather to cover the pillars. New soft and sculptural fixtures round off the overall arrangement. "Sophie-Charlotte" - the name of the elegant attic apartment - is born.

www.baldini-architekten.de

Photos:
Luca Girardini
www.lucagirardini-photography.com

(Published in CUBE Berlin 02|25)