This was published 4 years ago
Pocket-sized apartment packs a big punch
What’s inspiring about Nickolas Gurtler’s one-bedroom apartment in Richmond is just how much character he’s managed to pack into its 40-square-metre footprint. “The expansive views over the Melbourne skyline, through full-height glazed doors, makes it feel as though the city is part of the living room,” says the interior designer.
By keeping the south-facing balcony free of outdoor furniture, he’s taken visual clutter away from the vista.
Nickolas Gurtler has packed a lot of character into his one-bedroom apartment in Melbourne's Richmond.Credit: Timothy Kaye
“On a practical level there isn’t much privacy on the balcony, so when I have friends over I open the glass doors and enjoy the indoor/outdoor connection.”
The floorplan of the third-floor apartment was fairly prescriptive with regards to where major pieces of furniture could be placed, so Gurtler concentrated on ensuring the scale and proportion of the pieces worked in the space, injecting originality through his choice of couches, tables and lighting.
“I’m fascinated by the design of the late 1970s and early ’80s,” he says. This found its way into the apartment through burnt-orange velvet, dark emperador marble and brass details.
The masculine, linear treatment is balanced by more rounded feminine shapes such as the semi-circular cutaways in the prototype “Solace” chair by Lost Profile Studio, and the circular, custom-made “Prometheus IV” table lamp on the sideboard, by Melbourne designer Christopher Boots. “I’m always on the hunt for pieces of beauty and rarity.”
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