A stunning Haussmannian apartment has been transformed into a luminous and sophisticated living space just steps away from the renowned Hotel Drouot in Paris. Boclaud Architecture has masterfully renovated this 140-square-meter residence behind the Grands Boulevards, creating a harmonious blend of classic architectural elements and contemporary design sensibilities.
The project began when the owner reclaimed the apartment on Rue Chauchat, which had previously served as her office space before being rented out. "The owner had this apartment on Rue Chauchat which she had made into her office before renting it out. She took it back to make it her apartment, that's where the project started," explains Céline Boclaud, founder of Boclaud Architecture. While the former office was in relatively good condition, it underwent a complete renovation to accommodate a new room distribution, addressing the classic Haussmannian challenge of having the kitchen facing the courtyard and the bedroom facing the street.
The new circulation plan strategically places the kitchen between the dining room and living room, with reception areas overlooking the street. The layout continues in an enfilade formation through a large dressing room and culminates in a guest bedroom designed to accommodate the owners' grandchildren. This thoughtful arrangement maximizes both natural light flow and spatial continuity throughout the residence.
The dining room serves as one of the apartment's focal points, establishing the design's guiding principles for the home designed for two residents. Treated as an intimate boudoir, the room features a grand wooden library that creates a slightly darker but significantly warmer atmosphere. The space showcases beautiful Haussmannian features while addressing the challenge of warming up the generous volumes typical of this architectural style.
Adjacent to the dining room, the kitchen adopts a more minimalist aesthetic while maintaining its role as a true living space. The original herringbone parquet flooring has been preserved, complemented by a central island and a large storage column wall dressed in beige tones that allow the volumes to speak for themselves. The ceiling moldings have been carefully reconstructed, and the design deliberately avoids decorative lighting in favor of discrete track-mounted spotlights. The room is painted in a gentle cream-beige tone using lime paint, which provides texture without overwhelming graphics while maintaining neutrality and adding depth that perfectly complements the walnut wood essence of the woodwork.
The innovative use of square doorless openings creates seamless transitions between rooms, from the dining room to the guest bedroom, with only the guest room featuring a closing door for privacy. "It was important to circulate light and realize the scope of the apartment, its length, and this sequence of windows and openings," notes Boclaud. These right-angled passages dialogue beautifully with the XXL photographic prints in the living room, created by Spanish artist Juan Uslé, whose large-format sea photographs in blues and greens bring color and rectangularity that echoes throughout the space.
The material palette reflects the owner's personality - one of discrete elegance that privileges distinction without ostentation. Noble yet simple materials including wood and travertine create an understated luxury expressed through volumes and color achieved through textures of lime paint, wood, and mirrors, all serving as backdrops for carefully curated artworks. Attention to detail is evident in elements like grooved shelves with hollow joints and similar details on the bathroom door, reminiscent of the apartment's former office incarnation.
The circulation areas feature polished concrete flooring with brushed stainless steel angles incorporated by Céline Boclaud to create expansion joints while forming a corridor carpet-like graphic pattern. Strategic mirror placement visually enlarges the circulation spaces and bounces light as far as possible throughout the residence, enhancing the apartment's natural luminosity provided by seven windows in enfilade.
The bedroom, relocated to the courtyard side, features paneled walls and lacquered storage solutions similar to those in the kitchen but in different tonalities. "We are very neutral in the choice of materials and colors. That's what I like, to develop a monochrome and not develop a multitude of materials," explains Boclaud. The custom-designed headboard wall incorporates a mirror, bedside tables, and extends into full-height storage solutions, demonstrating the project's commitment to both functionality and aesthetic coherence.
Throughout the residence, the apartment designed by Boclaud Architecture showcases the owner's role as a collector through carefully positioned avant-garde pieces and artworks. From Juan Uslé's large-format photographs to Jean-François Fourtou's blue butterfly in the main bedroom, from framed tapestries in the dining room to various ceramics and sculptures, every piece finds its place without excess. The living room features a Zanotta William sofa paired with a coffee table by multidisciplinary artist Constance Lafonta, while Wire chairs by Overgaard & Dyrman and various designer pieces create an eclectic yet restrained aesthetic.
The apartment successfully demonstrates how Haussmannian architecture can be adapted for contemporary living while respecting its classical heritage. Like a well-curated gallery, every element is thoughtfully positioned, integrating and enhancing each other reciprocally in a narrative that is both classic and singular. The result is a warm yet humble residence that achieves discrete elegance through the interplay of classical woodwork, contemporary design pieces, and carefully selected artworks, proving that sophisticated design can be achieved through restraint rather than excess.
