Collection by Luke Hopping
Modern Homes Across Eastern Europe
Venture across the vanquished Iron Curtain to see strikingly modern homes in Poland, Russia, and beyond.
"The credenza is probably my favorite piece of furniture, and in the Yugodom I set up one in each room," Milakovic says. The piece in the 1970s-themed bedroom features an array of period products that the former owner bought in Trieste, Italy, a favorite destination for buying "Western" goods during the socialist era. All of the objects except the fan are marked Made in Yugoslavia.
Dragisic used basic materials and colors throughout the apartment: white for the custom shelving, charcoal gray for the sofa from Cor, and oak for the furniture and flooring. "This approach allowed the residents the freedom of doing any additional decorations (art, colored cushions, carpets, accessories etc.) without disrupting the overall design-statement," she says.
Rok Oman of OFIS Architects started the renovation of what would become Villa Criss-Cross by tackling a thorny site issue. Since it is located close to the street and perpendicular to the old Roman wall near Ljubljana's ancient fortress, zoning laws require buildings to be set four meters back from the street. By maintaining the original wall and adding steel panels, Oman grandfathered in the new structure and maintained the original orientation.
The budget was nearly as tight as the space in this cheerful renovation of a 516-square-foot flat in Bratislava. The centerpiece of Lukáš Kordík’s new kitchen is the cabinetry surrounding the sink, a feat he managed by altering the facing and pulls of an off-the-rack Ikea system. The laminate offers a good punch of blue, and in modernist fashion, Kordík forwent door handles in favor of cutouts. “I wanted the kitchen to be one simple block of color without any additional design,” he says.