Ménilmontant apartment

The Ménilmontant Project focuses on the renovation of a 54 sqm apartment located in a building from the early 20th century.

The first challenge was to immortalize this space by designing 3 Créations originales—souvenir cards—at the scale of the space.

The second challenge involved combining daily life functions with professional life by organizing, in one seamless movement, personal belongings, work tools, and works of art.

This space has retained the characteristics of a typically Parisian interior: French-style parquet flooring, waxed red tiles, moldings, and marble and cast iron fireplaces. The artistic identity of the neighborhood sets the stage for this creative renovation.

The different rooms of the apartment act as white showcases: subtly enhanced with restored elements and moldings, they host iconic pieces of 1960s Italian design alongside contemporary original creations.

The living room showcases the first three Créations originales by Office ICO: CO-01 The Church, CO-02 Ménilmontant, and CO-03 The School. The Church and Ménilmontant spatially align with the windows overlooking the exterior, while The School overlooks the living area.

The living space has been almost entirely renovated: the cornices and ceiling rosace embrace the room, while the parquet flooring from the 1900s has been preserved and restored. The vintage furniture, mainly Italian from the 1960s, accentuates the structure of the space while adding softness through its curves and rounded details.

The office space overlooks the living area with a retractable desk, where CO-02 Ménilmontant creates a landscape on the background wall.

In the kitchen, the Confection originale “Strive for Life” (2017) overlooks the room. Due to its scale and height within the space, it presides over and protects this corner of the apartment. This piece was designed and created by Hélène Fandeur during the Umbrella movement in Hong Kong. It is a bas-relief made of solid limewood and flocked with polyamide fiber.

The bedroom was designed as a functional space, featuring full-height closets and a headboard that accommodates select belongings. Poetry and dreaminess are brought to life by the ceiling cornices and the Confection originale “The Night”, designed and crafted by Hélène Fandeur. This piece is a contemporary reinterpretation of 18th-century Savonnerie rugs. This unique work was made with twisted cotton threads and measures 178 cm in length by 137.5 cm in height.

The bathroom has been completely renovated, creating a calm and orderly atmosphere where the geometry of the parquet flooring extends onto the walls through randomly patterned beige tiles. The polished granite from the kitchen is also used in the bathroom, adding texture and depth to the space.