By Shawn Williams
Updated: May 22
Malfinio reconstructs an apartment in one of the first tenement buildings in Prague built in the Functionalist design style, transforming it into a serene, art-filled space.
The stunning E19 Apartment in Prague is a reconstruction project in one of the first tenement buildings in the city built in the Functionalist style. Sidebar: Functionalism in architecture emerged in the 1920s as part of the wave of Modernism, it follows the principle that buildings should be designed based solely on their purpose and function. Czechoslovakia excelled in this style. Example: Villa Tugendhat in Brno, designed by Mies van der Rohe in 1928.
Architect Martina Homolková of Prague-based studio Malfinio stripped out all of this dated apartments' old, cluttered décor and disastrous accretions, leaving nothing but an open-concept floorplan and a flood of natural light. Then she built it back up, giving it a new life filled with streamlined modern amenities.
Designed to promote connectivity, the apartment has a spacious, open layout with long vistas providing breathtaking views. There is a large custom-designed furniture block that spans the entire space and houses utility rooms and closets, it even conceals the kitchen behind bi-fold doors and two bathrooms. The face of the block became a large-format canvas perfectly envisioned by artist Klára Spišková.