The Local Project (August 15, 2023) – Brad Swartz Architects has become an expert in blending small spaces with wabi-sabi aesthetics and Australian modernism.

Video timeline: 00:00 – Intro to the Wabi-Sabi Tiny Apartment 00:52 – The Location of the Apartment 01:16 – A Walkthrough of the Wabi-Sabi Apartment 02:20 – Behind the Renovation 03:09 – The Clients Brief and the Japanese Inspiration 03:48 – Uncovering Unexpected Gems 04:14 – Playful Aspects of the Apartment 04:30 – The Paired Back Material Palette

This focus has been continued in Elizabeth Bay, with this tiny apartment taking inspiration from the client’s cultured past and the architecture of a historical Sydney building that resembles an ocean liner. ‘Kyabin’ is the Japanese spelling of ‘cabin’, a likeness which reveals itself when looking at the client’s brief to convert an 80-square-metre, two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment into a one-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment with a single guest space.

The living space is also made to be more spacious and opens up to the view of Rushcutters Bay. Form over function was a defining principle of the modernist design philosophy that informed the interiors and overall style of the tiny apartment. Discovering the entire building was built with precast concrete beams – which had been concealed beneath ceiling sheeting for more than 60 years – also informed a refined materiality, deepening the interior design’s wabi-sabi undertones.

A pared-back material palette imbues the tiny apartment with a sense of calm, despite its small size, and a muted textural selection of stone and oak means the focus remains on the views beyond. The home’s design also has longevity in mind, allowing the next occupant to treat Kyabin Apartment as a blank canvas for personal expression.