Timber Shadow Ornatus Interior Domesticus by Tzu-Chun Yen and Jhih-Wei Chen

Timber Shadow Ornatus Interior Domesticus by Tzu-Chun Yen and Jhih-Wei Chen is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 Praemium A' Design Award Aeneum in Designatio Interior Competition Category.

AesInterior· 2026

Timber Shadow Ornatus Interior Domesticus

by Tzu-Chun Yen and Jhih-Wei Chen

Client: W.Design

Praemium A' Design Award Aeneum Winner in Interior Category

5,276

Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #182941

Visit Site View at A' Design Award Press Release Award Badge

Colors

The Design

About Timber Shadow Ornatus Interior Domesticus

Umbra Lignea est ornatus interior domesticus habitationis quinquaginta sex punctum duorum metrorum quadratorum Taipeii sitae. Dispositio aperta est, parietibus curvis quae insulam culinariam cum area sedendi coniungunt. Asseres verticales rhythmici e quercu obscura, arte peculiari dolata, parietes vestiunt et fines spatiales molliunt. Superficies inductione minerali manu illita, subaureis coloribus modestis, perfectae sunt, et pavimentum quercu in formam chevronis strata tegitur. Armaria occulta cum rimis umbrosis decem millimetrorum et lumen indirectum LED trium milium graduum Kelvin domum compactam tranquillam et rebus inutilibus vacuam servant.

The Recognition

About the Praemium A' Design Award Aeneum

Timber Shadow Ornatus Interior Domesticus victor est Praemii A' Design Award Aeneum, honoris multum aestimati formis egregiis, creandi ingenio, sollertia et acumine insignibus dati. Victores Aenei opera perita et mire creandi sunt, quae experientiam, imaginationem et solertiam auctorum suorum confirmant. Exspectatur Timber Shadow Ornatus Interior Domesticus rem multum aestimatam, admiratam et carissimam, notabiliter professionalem et novam fore. Haec forma Aeneo victa optimas consuetudines artis, scientiae, formandi rationis et technologiae amplectitur et in cura minutiarum excellit. Timber Shadow Ornatus Interior Domesticus necessitates egregie explet, cupiditates tangit, sensus capit et curiositatem allicit.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Timber Shadow transforms a 56.2-square-meter residence into a tranquil sanctuary. It distinguishes itself by balancing organic warmth with architectural stillness, creating an expansive feel in a compact footprint. Key features include custom-curved walls and rhythmic vertical timber slats that dissolve spatial boundaries. The design integrates specialty mineral paint with understated golden undertones and chevron wood flooring to add a tactile, luxurious dimension. By merging seamless storage with strategic lighting, the project achieves high-density functionality in a sophisticated urban environment.
Dimensions & Packaging: Total Floor Area: 56.2 square meters. Materials comprise custom-milled dark oak timber and hand-applied mineral coatings with understated golden undertones and a tactile matte finish. Flooring features precision-laid chevron oak. Lighting specifications include high-grade 3000K indirect LED strips and bespoke architectural pendant luminaires. Technical details involve precision-fabricated concealed cabinetry with 10mm shadow-gap detailing at ceiling and floor junctions.
Tags: Residential Interior, Minimalist Design, Curvilinear Forms, Timber Slats, Light and Shadow, Compact Living, Specialty Finishes, Chevron Flooring, Taipei Residence, Modern Sanctuary
Production Technology: Advanced precision engineering was employed to realize a seamless minimalist aesthetic. Key technologies include custom-milled vertical timber slats and hand-applied mineral coatings with understated golden undertones on complex curved substrates. Integrated concealed cabinetry was executed with millimetric precision, incorporating shadow-gap detailing at floor and ceiling junctions. Strategic indirect LED integration ensures a uniform light wash, enhancing the tactile quality of materiality across the 56.2m2 footprint.
Design Challenge: The primary challenge was balancing a deep, atmospheric palette with the requirement for spatial expansion in a 56.2m2 footprint. We overcame visual confinement by implementing curved architectural transitions and rhythmic vertical elements that direct focus upward. Technically, integrating seamless concealed cabinetry into complex curved substrates required extreme precision and advanced joinery. This synthesis of light and materiality successfully transformed a restricted urban space into an expansive, restorative sanctuary.
Research: Type: Environmental psychology. Objectives: Enhance spatial perception in 56.2m2. Methodology: Light-shadow interplay analysis. Tools: 3D modeling and material prototyping. Participants: Urban dwellers. Results: Seamless curves and vertical slats dissolved boundaries. Insights: Dark palettes can evoke openness via strategic texture. Effect: Elevates residential well-being and provides a scalable, sophisticated design model for dense urban societies, redefining small-scale luxury.
Inspiration: The design is inspired by the ephemeral interplay of light and shadow observed within a dense forest, aiming to integrate the inherent tranquility of nature into a modern urban residence. The core concept of Timber Shadow reflects a profound desire to balance organic warmth with meditative stillness. By abstracting natural textures into minimalist architectural forms, such as rhythmic vertical slats that mimic tree trunks and fluid curved walls that mirror natural landscapes, the project establishes an introspective sanctuary. This spatial narrative offers essential emotional breathing room within a compact 56.2-square-meter apartment, emphasizing a harmonious connection between the inhabitant and the environment through the meticulous application of specialty mineral paint with understated golden undertones and layered indirect lighting.
Project Duration: The project commenced in September 2024 in Taipei and was successfully completed in January 2025 in Taipei, Taiwan. This intensive five-month timeline encompassed both the comprehensive design development phase and the meticulous on-site realization of the custom curvilinear forms and integrated lighting systems, ensuring that every detail of the 56.2-square-meter sanctuary was executed to the highest professional standards.
Operation Flow: The home orchestrates a seamless daily ritual through an intuitive open-plan flow. Residents are guided by fluid curved walls that dissolve boundaries between the kitchen island core and the living area. Interaction is driven by natural light filtering through rhythmic vertical slats, creating a dynamic dance of shadows that evolves from dawn to dusk. Hidden storage ensures a clutter-free environment, allowing the tactile specialty finishes to foster a profound sense of tranquility and space.
Patents: Copyrights belong to Tzu-Chun Yen and Jhih-Wei Chen, 2025. Trademark (2025) W.Design.
Team Members: Tzu-Chun Yen
Jhih-Wei Chen
Image Credits: Image #1: Photographer W.Design, Timber Shadow, 2025.
Image #2: Photographer W.Design, Timber Shadow, 2025.
Image #3: Photographer W.Design, Timber Shadow, 2025.
Image #4: Photographer W.Design, Timber Shadow, 2025.
Image #5: Photographer W.Design, Timber Shadow, 2025.