The glass blocks duplex | Tal Goldsmith Fish design studio

In this project, a duplex in a residential tower in Tel Aviv, during
the planning process we searched for the right mixture of materials,
colors and dynamics so as to provide to our clients, who
are coming in from the busy street,  a serene and peaceful place, a
home.

While entering the main hall, a double height space is revealed. To
soften the feeling and provide a sense of home rather than alienation,
we decided to create a bridge right at the center of the space.
Splitting the space in two not only provides a better human scale
proportion but also provides a variety of interesting viewing angles
and movement possibilities. The bridge leads to a western window with
a view towards the sea and so there we created a small reading and
relaxing area overlooking the sea.

Separating the public and private areas was achieved through the
creation of a large wall made of metalized glass blocks. Glass blocks
have been in use all over the world for over 200 years now. Their
strongest advantage is that they can be used to create constructive
walls which transfer light and form reflections and thus soften the
space and generate layers of interests.

The glass blocks used in this project aren’t fully transparent but do
transfer light and the silhouette of the person walking by on the
other side. In addition, during different times of the day, different
types of reflections are created adding more character to the space.

The glass block wall accompanies the person climbing up the stairs to
the upper level where the parents area is located along with the
bridge. In the master bedroom area there is a second glass block wall
which separates the sleeping area from the dressing area and bathroom
while still keeping a connection between all.

The walls of the duplex are covered with cement micro-topping layer
and along with the wooden floor, soft furniture and monochromatic palette
scheme, we receive the complete and harmonious picture of
all the elements together which induces serenity and tranquility for
the residents.