Villa in the clouds

Nitzan Horowitz designed a penthouse apartment like a private villa or a family of six, located on the 21st floor of an apartment block in the city of Herzliya, just north of Tel Aviv.

Spreading across 220m² of living space and a 170m² balcony, the property incorporates all the functionalities that standard private homes have, such as a family room, a wide corridor Sand a stunning outdoor space.

Designer Nitzan Horowitz, who was hired to manage the renovation, knows the clients (a couple with four children) for almost 30 years, and as a result, he was given complete design freedom. The entrance hall shares a wall with the family corner and structural pillars were used to continue the separation with an airier feel. From here you can see the Italian kitchen made of Mil-Tec (industrial material) in two shades: one that resembles steel, and the other corresponds with the color of the living space carpentry. While a huge classic white island gives a further brightness to the environment. The attention to detail and materials was meticulous, and a variety of elements were incorporated to make the apartment unique. Adjacent to the kitchen, a black painted wooden dining table has been positioned accompanied by light gray chairs, thanks to which a smooth transition to the living area takes place. Pinkish pendant lamps have been placed above the dining zone - they blend perfectly into the kitchen background. The artistic and decorative pieces are present in the whole property and were chosen in collaboration with an Israeli art gallery An elegant piece to mention is the artwork chosen for the dining area that was created by a local artist out of 1500 paper cuttings.

This is what made the project extremely fascinating. When there is a budget and complete design freedom, you can go totally wild. I created an apartment that is very casual, cozy and warm on the one hand, and luxurious on theother.

A light yet dominant wall was created in the main living space and fitted with an audio system, a/c, a wine bar and additional storage. Each unit was tailor-made to meet its specific functionality as well as serve the various forms of entertainment carried out in the living space. Regarding the color palette, throughout the apartment, the designer used shades of black, for example, appear in glass, wood, a variety of light fixtures, profile installations for suspended ceilings and for Frameless doors. The color scheme reappears in touches throughout the property and in different contexts that create continuity and fluidity, leaving a vivid memory that is carried on from room to room. A focal point of the property is its panoramic view. From the 21st floor, the view along with the positioning of the freestanding furniture throughout the apartment, creates a light and breezy open space. In the large balcony, the designer wanted to create a “garden” that would make any private property owner proud, by giving it a real jungle vibe. The balcony planning was carried out similarly to the interior in terms of its functionality and as such was fitted with a guest seating area and outdoor cooking area, all overlooking the stunning view. The property’s color scheme runs across the balcony too with the most dominant color, green, bursting from the vegetation.

The bedrooms have a very sophisticated design thanks to the combination of simple elegant furniture and the dark parquet, which runs throughout the apartment. A long black wardrobe with rose gold lighting was fitted in the master bedroom - this doesn't form a dark and opaque room since it's flooded with natural light thanks to several windows that flow from the ceiling to the floor. The bathrooms were designed to complement the design of each of the bedrooms. Therefore, the bedroom's accents continue in the en-suite with black carpentry and touches of rose gold in the lighting and sanitaryware. These elements are dotted across the various spaces creating “pockets” of design stories whilst at the same time coming together as part of a greater design concept.

The children each have their own bedroom. The teenagers have also their own ensuites while the older children share a bathroom. In the children’s rooms, we find colorful, joyful and humorous art such as graphic or rhinoceros prints. Even here the bathrooms is a continuation of the room design, for example, the daughter’s bathroom continues the white shades used in her bedroom.

Photography by Oded Smadar