A Düsseldorf Altbau apartment renovated by VAUST around preserved period moldings, an open plan, and a curated selection of rare design objects

S24 Apartment is a Düsseldorf residence renovated by VAUST, the Berlin studio known for working at the edge of interior and object design. The apartment is an Altbau, carrying the kind of original architectural detail, ornate moldings, cornices, and period proportions, that most renovations erase. VAUST's approach preserved all of it, using those inherited elements as the foundation for a contemporary interior rather than a surface to be cleared.

The plan opens the kitchen, living room, and dining room into a connected sequence, promoting movement and interaction between spaces. A monumental window was introduced to frame the garden beyond, pulling daylight into the interior and establishing a direct visual connection between inside and out. Natural materials, wood, stone, and metal, run through the apartment, providing warmth and texture that sit in keeping with the Altbau fabric around them. Polystyrene stones, aggregate concrete tables, and polished aluminum mirrors introduce contemporary counterpoints within that palette.

The object selection was curated in collaboration with GUSCH and reflects the inhabitants' interest in rare and significant design pieces. Key items include Philippe Starck's Dr. Sonderbar, Shiro Kuramata's How High the Moon, and Shigeru Uchida's Tenderly lamp. The living room pairs a table by Gae Aulenti with chairs by Mario Botta. Art was selected in collaboration with gallery Meierbach, with works by Corey Mason among the pieces included. The combination of period architecture, a considered material palette, and a concentrated selection of design objects gives the apartment its specific register: historical and contemporary, inhabited and collected at the same time.