Minimalist Japanese design finds a home in high-end Hong Kong residential district
A clean, clutter-free interior helps a family’s 2,000 sq ft Kowloon Tong flat feel even more spacious
Pale wood and warm pastel tones can lend calmness to interiors: in this Kowloon Tong home, they also enhance the minimalist aesthetic.
Max Lam Tsz-hong, who designed the 2,000 sq ft, three-bedroom flat, incorporated aspects of Japanese aesthetics (natural materials, used in an understated way), as well as a wealth of storage – the home accommodates a family of four, including two children, aged 10 and eight.
Lam, of Max Lam Designs, removed a storeroom near the entrance to create a large, open living and dining area that now spans almost one-third of the flat. While appreciating its new openness, his clients wanted it partitioned in a way that would allow different areas to be revealed little by little.
On entry to the flat, a small hallway is partly concealed from the rest of the space by a slatted screen with a shoe bench at its base. Storage feature with locker-style cupboard space separates the sitting area from the dining “room”.
Construction of the divider was not without challenges. Sections of the piece are suspended from the ceiling while the rest is attached at the base.
“It’s dynamic,” says Lam of the unit, which features compartments of various sizes. “I tried to make the space minimal and clean, with a lot of small details.”
