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Press Release

The Mermaid's Home

A' Design Award 2020 Iron Winner in Interior Space and Exhibition Design

23 April 2020

The Mermaid's Home by Marty Chou
The Mermaid's Home by Marty Chou
The Mermaid's Home by Marty Chou
The Mermaid's Home by Marty Chou
The Mermaid's Home by Marty Chou

Marty Chou · CLIENT: Ms. Lee

The Mermaid's is a residential interior design for a 90 square meter apartment in Taiwan. The space is conceived as a gallery for the owner's collections rather than a conventional home. A mermaid figure from a new collection became the central theme, setting the semi-monochrome palette and the calm atmosphere. Classical molding is used as a design tool. The vertical lines make the space appear higher, and they conceal room doors and storage cabinets. Daily functions are hidden to keep the view simple. Furniture is selected for contrast between straight and curved forms.

Press Kit

Unique Properties
During the design, came a new collection - a little Mermaid. Her serene quality caught me and my mind started to evolve around her. She became the focal point and anchor of the space, the tone of the ambiance, and the source of the semi-monochrome palette.

In the end, the entire space is the extend-dimension of this fantastical creature. She is the soul of this space; the soul that reflect the essence of the elegant lady.
Dimensions & Packaging
The interior space is 90 square-meter.
Tags
Interior design, Home Gallery, Modern Classic, Minimalism, monochrome space, monochrome palette, Taiwan
Production Technology
The classical molding here is used not merely as decoration but more as a design tool. Its vertically stretching quality makes the space appears to be higher than it actually is. It also hides away the doors of rooms and storage cabinets, unified and simplified the visual elements, and create a sense of serenity and calmness for the space.
Design Challenge
The main challenge of this project is about finding balance, mainly between practicality and fantasy, decorative and minimal, classical and modern.
Project Duration
The project started in July 2017 in Taiwan and finished in June 2018.
Operation Flow
To respond to the owner's wish to live in a not-home-like place, I conceive the entire space as a gallery of her collections and display of her taste. Daily function and storage are hidden away to create a sense of optimal airy-ness, so the eyes only see the most essentials. Furniture selection focuses on the quality of contrast between straight and curve, thick and thin, light and heavy, as they are displayed sculptural pieces. As for the Mermaid, its elements are used throughout the entire space; the choice of materials, the fabrics, and colors, are all inspired by her.
Research
This project is an experiment of utilizing the owner's collection not merely as ornament, but to be the main concept and inspiration of the space. And also, to incorporate the owner's fascination of classical molding into contemporary design.
Inspiration
In the beginning, the owner of this apartment, an elegant and beautiful lady, told me that she would like to live in a place, where its ambiance is ambiguous, less like a home, more like a sanctuary in dream, in which she could be isolated and indulged with her on-going collections in this timeless, sacred space.
Image Credits
Photo Credit: Kyle Yu Photo Studio

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