Press Release
Forge Loft Apartment by Jan Sikora Receives the Silver A' Design Award in Interior Space and Exhibition Design
The international grand jury of the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition recognizes Jan Sikora for interior space and exhibition design
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 23, 2021 /DesignNewswire/ Forge Loft Apartment by Jan Sikora, designed for ICC Real Estate, has been granted the Silver A' Design Award in the Interior Space and Exhibition Design category, A' Design Award & Competition has announced. The recognition forms part of the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
The Silver A' Design Award Explained
The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.
About Forge Loft Apartment
Forge Loft is a loft apartment created inside an old forge in Leszno, Poland. The forge is part of a 19th-century pump factory that is being converted into a living complex. The interior is based on contrast. Original brick walls, concrete floors and lintels are kept as raw witnesses of the past. New elements are neutral and elegant, forming a frame for the historical structure. Black surfaces, perforated steel, a steel railing and a spiral staircase set the background, while warm accessories and soft textiles soften the industrial character. The apartment covers 120 square metres.
About Jan Sikora
Interior architect, architectural designer, owner of a design studio - born in 1984, author of over a hundred private and public interiors and architectural objects. He designed, among others interiors of such premises as: Polish Institute in Palazzo Blumensthill in Rome, Seafood Station restaurant in Sopot, Jasny Dwór in Bąków, Kultura station in Rumia, Hotel Number One in Gdańsk, Art. Incubator in Sopot, Sopoteka, Marie Zelie showroom and many others. Creator, idealist, visionary. Creates unique places that regularly receive the most important Polish and foreign awards.
Award Record
With this recognition, Jan Sikora is a winner of 1 A' Design Award.
About the A' Interior Space, Retail and Exhibition Design Award
The A' Interior Design Award is an international interior design competition recognizing good interior designs by interior designers and architects worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to interior designers, interior architects, architects and decorators from all countries. Entries typically include residential interiors, restaurants, hotels, offices, galleries and retail stores. Awarded interior designs are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/interior
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://dezigners.org/115347
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/115347
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!115347
- Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/294301
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://hometime.pl/dom/styl-loftowy-wedlug-jana-sikory/
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Forge Loft Apartment
- Function
- Apartment
- Category
- Interior Space and Exhibition Design
- Discipline
- Spatial Design
- Industry
- Architecture and Packaging & Retail
- Colors
- Dim Gray, Sandy Brown, Gray, Dark Slate Gray and Chocolate
- Images
- 5
- Client
- ICC Real Estate
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Jan Sikora
- Country
- Poland
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2020 - 2021
- Design ID
- #115347
Credits
- Image Credits
- Photographer Tom Kurek, Forge Loft, 2020.
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Adaptation of an old forge located in Leszno, Poland into an apartment. The Forge is part of a 19th-century factory of pumps, which ICC Real Estate is turning into a living space. Its vast courtyard is built up on all sides with ceramic brick buildings formed into a technological sequence. In this interior, contrast is the key: what is found is dirty and has broken colors (brick, concrete). What is new is neutral but elegant - it created an ideal compositional "frame" for the historical tissue.
- Inspiration
- The space of the old forge was an amazing inspiration, just like the industrial feel of the pump factory surrounding it. It had the perfection of old dirty walls and a unique atmosphere and smell of a forge. The concept emarged in designer's head moments after experiencing the place for the first time. Raw elements, left as a witness of the history, contrasted with softness of fabrics and greenery.
- Research
- Pragmatic aproach to research was implemented, along with case study research. Objectives of the research were to understand the space of the factory and keep the existing character of the forge. Case study methodology was used with focus groups data collection. The effect of the revitalisation is yet to be known, but it can bring the area to live again, while celebrating its history.
- Challenge
- The key to the success of the project was full control of its implementation. The designer had to be very direct, sharp in opinions and determined - it was easy to destroy this place with a few weak decisions. An additional problem was the implementation of the project during the pandemic. A smaller budget, variable work schedule and disorganized process were some of the difficulties that had to be faced.
- Realization and Technology
- The loft space has its original brick walls, a concrete floor, lintels and other raw elements. Black (in many variants and versions) creates the background with fenix matte in kitchen cabinets, perforated steel, the rhythm of a steel railing, and a soft line of spiral stairs. Accessories in warm shades and soft textures break the postindustrial character. A painting of New York made by the designer was the final touch.
- Operation and Interaction
- The cities we live in are the museums of our ancestors. Walking the streets (in atmosphere, smell, scale or image of the city) we get to know its history. The pump factory has been unused for almost 30 years. Now it gets to live again with a new function, providing its residents with a space that appratiates its history, instead of hiding it.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project started in February 2020 and finished in November 2020.
- Specifications
- 120 square metres, size: 13x7m (ground floor), 7x4m (mezzanine - added)
- Keywords
- interior, loft, factory, forge, revitalization, Poland, apartment, residential
