The Mirror Window
A partial renovation of the office area within a building complex that hosts a workshop space, an office and a contemporary art gallery.
A partial renovation of the office area within a building complex that hosts a workshop space, an
office and a contemporary art gallery. The project was completed after designs and constructions
made during three months of the architect’s on-site residency.
The existing window with the dimensions of 2 by 2.5 meters - the first sight for visitors as they enter
the space - had a barren view of an adjacent house. It was clear at the first glance that changing
this window would determine the nature of the new space. The idea was to abandon the use of this
window that had no view: Instead, to reflect views of the interior space. The 2-meter-long plate of
mirror was prepared after the dimensions of doma (an earth floor connecting the entrance and the
outside), and installed behind the window along the span of the concrete fence.
The mirror reflects not only the interior space, but also adjacent walls and its neighbourhood,
revealing otherwise overlooked elements of the architecture from many different angles. It also
created extra scope of sight and added a sense of depth to the space. The horizontal sliding
windows were reused as the sliding doors inside. When the doors are open, doma becomes
integral part of the indoor space.
As the result, the renovation created additional views and open-air space through reworking the
existing windows and exploring the reflective effects of mirror which intermingles the relationship
between the interior and the exterior.
