Being creative is essential to my wellbeing’, states Félix Millory, and there’s nothing the Paris-based architect and designer loves more than having the chance to give a property a second lease of life.
Sometimes the project is more of a challenge than usual, and the transformation of this 321-square-metre triplex near the Arc de Triomphe, which belongs to a Middle Eastern dignitary, proved particularly exacting. ‘You can’t imagine how complex it was,’ he says.
Félix recalls the entrance hall as being ‘without natural light or any sense of style’, while the rest of the decor was heavy, with lots of tiny rooms. The living room, meanwhile, was dominated by an unwieldy staircase that led up to a bathroom on a mezzanine. ‘It was like a palimpsest of modifications that were totally incoherent,’ he says. There was only one thing for it: to gut the entire space.
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Newly reimagined, the lower floor now centres around a striking circular foyer, and the living room’s double-height ceilings have been cleverly accentuated. To do this, Félix kept a section of the wainscoting low so that the panelling above it would appear even grander.
He also added an extra-high stone fireplace with a large mirror above and totems flanking it, to further exaggerate the dimensions. The height of the room did pose one logistical problem, though. ‘We had to make sure the paintwork was absolutely perfect before removing the scaffolding,’ he explains. ‘You can’t have someone perched on a ladder nearly six metres up in the air doing retouching.’
It was also difficult to hoist things into the building from the street, so the dramatically curved staircase that now links all three floors had to be assembled on site.
Keen to infuse the rooms with a distinct Parisian flair, Félix installed a whole host of traditional-style architectural details(panelling, mouldings, cornices... ). ‘We always aim to strike a balance between something that’s slightly opulent and other elements that are more restrained,’ he says.
He played with contrasts in other ways, too – the colour palette is dominated by black and white; rigorous lines are juxtaposed with rounder forms. ‘For me, the project was a bit of a turning point,’ he admits. ‘I’ve never really used curves in my work before.’ Yet this home still bears the hallmarks of his style – ‘an apparent simplicity that is anything but simple’. felixmillory.com
