Martine Seibert-Raken's house is a unique work of art and the loft conversion is the final act in the "transformation" of the house, which was built in 1925. The biggest challenge was to fit as much as possible into the 40 square meters - bedroom, kitchen, workspace, bathroom and toilet - while still making the whole thing feel airy.
The artist from Unkel on the Middle Rhine has lots of ideas. She became nationally known for her pink clouds made of chicken wire - some of which are huge installations for which she was celebrated at the Venice Art Biennale.
Martine herself has been living on a kind of "cloud" in her artist's house for a year now, having vacated one floor for her grown-up sons. It was important to her that her attic apartment should be open and airy. She has achieved this with many creative ideas: with a largely open space that is only structured by the roof beams, with delicate furniture, a large movable mirror that also serves as a front door and hidden cupboards.
In the middle of the room: a bright blue "beauty box" with shower. Her attic apartment is particularly airy thanks to the many glazed roof surfaces, which provide light and space. Early in the morning, Martine can watch the winegrowers at work in the steep vineyard from her bed: "I get to experience all the weather conditions up close here - sun, wind, rain or snow," she says happily.
On the other side, she can look through the glass front from her drawing table across the neighboring roofs to the other bank of the Rhine. A small balcony hangs in front of it like a bird's nest. Martine can move her light furniture onto it in summer and simply move her living space outside. It's "wildly romantic", she enthuses.
And that was also important to her: despite modern art and design, the character of the old attic was to remain tangible. The beams remained uncovered, as did the fireplace in the middle of the room or the fat armored box. Martine also left the old nails and screws where they were. "I wanted a house that tells stories," explains the artist.
Thanks to Martine's façade art, her artist's house is now the eye-catcher in the center of Unkel.
When the Bonn native stood in front of the house eight years ago looking for a new studio, she knew immediately that this was it. And that was without even having seen the inside of the building. So love at first sight? Not really, because even as a teenager Martine had a kind of dream in which a very similar house appeared to her. Where she lived with her family and animals, made art and gathered and cooked for friends and neighbors at the weekend.
To make this vision come true, she first removed many partition walls on the first floor, which used to house a tailor's shop and a party office, transforming it into a large, light-filled space. On the one hand, it serves as a studio and gallery. It also serves as a venue for small concerts or readings. Martine has also installed a large kitchenette - for regular "cooking carnage", as she says.
At the center of the room, however, are two massive tables that the landlady designed and built herself. After all, she not only studied architecture, but also completed a carpentry apprenticeship beforehand. Her tables are designed to take a beating and therefore rest on heavy iron supports. And yet they look delicate because their tops are made of thousands of small and colorful mirror plates. She made the chairs from barrel staves that a winemaker friend gave her.
When the rotten shed behind the house had to be demolished, she had a multi-storey guest house built on the foundations and replaced a dilapidated shed roof with a huge terrace - covered by a large pink wire cloud. Even more space for lots of art and new ideas.
A film by Christopher Hiepe (editor), Sascha Bremus (camera), Johannes Bock (camera and sound) and Diana Kalb (editor).
00:00 Living in Martine's pink cloud house
01:46 Bedroom
03:57 Kitchen
04:59 Roof terrace
06:28 Bathroom
08:46 Studio
10:18 Kitchen in the studio
11:52 Terrace and guest house
17 авг 2024
