Colaba, Mumbai · 2022
Colaba Apartment
A heritage-grade shell restored, with every new element held off the original walls.
Specification
- Area
- 1,850 sq ft
- Typology
- Pied-à-terre
- Duration
- 6 months
- Year
- 2022
- Location
- Colaba, Mumbai
01 The brief
A Grade IIA heritage building. The owner, resident abroad, wanted a working pied-à-terre without touching the fabric of the building.
02 The constraint
Heritage committee approval prohibited any fixing into the original lime-plaster walls or the Burma teak floor.
03 The decision
Everything new is freestanding or ceiling-hung. A single 11m brass-and-walnut spine runs the length of the flat carrying storage, lighting and services, resting on the floor at only six points.
04 The result
Approved by the heritage committee in one submission. The original surfaces are entirely reversible — the flat could be returned to its 1908 state in under three weeks.