DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE

URBAN APARTMENT LIGHTING DESIGN

PROJECT TYPE: Conceptual Apartment & Lighting Design
LOCATION: Vancouver, BC, Canada
COLLABORATION: Carsten Spielmann
YEAR: 2024

Inspired by stories, such as Alice in Wonderland’s warped tumble down the rabbit hole, this space embodies an abstract composition of memories and childhood fantasies. Alternating between experiences of living under water, hiding in a fox’s den, nestling between towering trees, and more, this interior invites its inhabitants to reawaken their childhood imagination and offers a playful escape from adulthood.

Collage artwork referenced as inspiration for the interior — INSPIRATION ARTWORK: Ben Lewis Giles, All in my Head, 2014.

The clients provided a list of ‘I once imagined...’ statements, inspired by their favourite stories, that we abstractly translate into an interior design.

Interior materials: steel, glass, fabric, concrete, and oak — Steel, glass, fabric, pigmented concrete and Canadian oak meet to create an evocative interior space.

Abstracting these notions and material explorations, the design introduces eight distinct zones that offer escapes into memories and stories, reigniting a sense of childlike wonder through interior design.

Interior - Into the Woods zone, colour and steel tree forms — INTO THE WOODS. Inspired by childhood memories of stories around the campfire, inhabitants are welcomed home by a playful blend of colours and forms. Stainless steel trees divide the colourful space, reinvigorating memories of forest fairy tales in an abstract, contemporary way.

LIGHTING DESIGN

Interior overview with colour and steel elements

A MOMENT IN WATER. Rippled ceiling, sand-inspired surfaces and light mingle to create an underwater oasis.

Kitchen with reflective steel forms — THE MAZE. Forms with reflective steel surfaces protrude into the kitchen space, creating an illusion of a topsy turvy maze in which colour, form and light dance.

THE FOXDEN. Cozying up inside a fox den-inspired, rotational bedroom, shifting perspectives of the interior allow your imagination to wander and different atmospheres to emerge.

Inside, a custom magnetic flashlight-inspired wall lighting allows for adjustable atmosphere and function.

Balcony merged with interior through sliding glass