studio to a triplex

Located in Manhattan’s Meatpacking District, this 120m2 townhouse was converted from a studio on the third floor to a triplex, combined with the adjoining duplex below. In the renovation De-Spec’s guiding principle was to improve the quality of light and air flowing throughout, to create an expansive feeling in an otherwise small and narrow space.
The primary architectural challenges were to find a way to open up the house to allow light to pass through from the sky to the ground level, to move up and down without cutting up the living quarters, and to eliminate the triplex feeling.
This triplex townhouse consists of a garden-level living room, a master bedroom suite on the third floor, and a kitchen and dining area on the entry level. In order to create the feeling of a connected space in a multi-level townhouse, a new open staircase system that eases the transition between movement.
Given the width of building, De-Spec’s solution was a series of steps that cantilever from the wall and float towards the center of the space, allowing light to filter through the risers. An angled skylight was added to the front portion of the third floor, which reveals a view of the trees hanging over the townhouse which frames the master bedroom suite from above, and also redirects and filters light down to the lower levels. Meeting with the natural light emanating from the all-glass facade in the rear, the townhouse also opens up into a garden, which connects nature and light.