BURR transforms a 1970s apartment into an experimental dwelling in madrid

BURR — the architecture studio formerly known as taller de casquería — has completed the radical renovation of a modest 40 sqm apartment in madrid, spain. located within a 1970s housing block on joan margall street, the original layout was compartmentalized into different rooms for each function. with this recent transformation, BURR has done away with the solid walls and replaced them with textile partitions to create a fluid and adaptable home.

images by maru serrano

the previously compartmentalized apartment contained two bedrooms, a bathroom, a living room, and a kitchen. the design team at BURR dismantled the divisions between spaces and dissolved the limits of the uses associated with each of them. the only solid walls in the apartment now are the ones that contain a central core for the toilet, shower, and other services.

the rest of the floor plan is open, allowing different functions to flow into one another; inhabitants sleep in the bathroom and shower in the living room. timber flooring and white plaster walls extend throughout the apartment all except for the white-tiled box in the middle of the floor plan, which connects also to the kitchen to signify the wet functions of the house.

in place of solid walls, BURR has installed rails into the ceilings, where textile partitions designed in collaboration with rubén gómez are hung. thanks to these retractable elements, inhabitants can enjoy privacy only when they need it. a study capsule can be set up, a bedroom can be isolated, or the kitchen can be hidden. the curtains that delimit these spaces materially reflect the activities they are intended to shelter; the bedroom is wrapped in a curtain made of quilts while the study can be enclosed by a curtain made of folded felt strips.

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project info:

name: JM55

location: madrid, spain

architect: BURR (fka taller de casquería): elena fuertes, ramón martínez, álvaro molins, jorge sobejano + ledo pérez

textile design: BURR + rubén gómez

photography: maru serrano