Serenity and sleek modern

Serenity and sleek modern

Axelrod Architects transforms a Tel Aviv home from ’80s glitz to no-nonsense, modern cool…
Axelrod Architects, led by Principal Irit Axelrod, transforms a 5500-sq. ft., two-storey, single-family house in Tel Aviv to reflect the homeowners’ love of serenity and sleek modern design, and the firm’s vision of modern residential architecture.

Serenity and sleek modern

The new homeowners wanted to remodel an existing 1980’s house to reflect their indoor-outdoor lifestyle. Their family life is now centred around a lush landscaped courtyard just outside their living-dining space. Axelrod Architects organized the house around a new ‘Black Core’, a glossy, black glass elevator that connects the living spaces below to the private sleeping spaces above. The living space opens out to nature with sliding, clear glass openings, while opening upward to the bedroom level with open balconies and a double-height ceiling. An open reading/media area tucked away upstairs allows the family to see each other, while still finding quiet space for relaxation. The entry facade of white concrete and matte stucco is perforated by vertical openings and horizontal slits that reveal the indoor-outdoor nature of the home within, presenting a sleek modernist face to the quiet, upscale neighbourhood of Tel Aviv.

The glass surface of the black core inside reflects images of landscape throughout the house, reinforcing the idea of living in nature. The simple clarity of contrasting surfaces – in black and white or glossy and matte – is one of the unifying characteristics repeated in the interior design and the architecture of the building envelope. The home espouses Irit Axelrod’s modern visual language, influenced by numerous international styles and Bauhaus buildings Serenity and sleek modern