Recently completed, Barbican Apartment is a wonderfully simple, bright, and spacious dwelling in the city of London. Designed by renowned minimalist architect John Pawson alongside his project team of Maria Bello and Chris Masson, the layout of this apartment was previously fragmented into a series of separate elements, including four bedrooms. The architectural reimagining of the space began with the idea of paring away everything to a state of emptiness and using three axes from the underlying structure to shape the new geometry of the now one-bedroomed accommodation.

A free-standing timber volume inserted within the core of the cleared floor plan houses a work area and also becomes the medium for quietly ordering all other elements of the programme.

To maintain an uncluttered, minimalist approach throughout the apartment, five objects that the clients brought into the project—three paintings, a grandfather clock and a figure of the Buddha—serve as waypoints within the spatial narrative, alongside framed, elevated views out into the urban skyline.

Barbican Apartment does not only exude quintessential minimalism with Pawson’s distinctive style, but through its soft, calming tones throughout, it also appears incredibly welcoming. It is a home one can feel at ease, tranquil, and comfortable. Barbican is a beautiful sanctuary.