Villa Lucille: A House with Its Own Identity

In the eastern vicinity of Turkey's largest city, Istanbul, in the Tuzla area, stands the architecturally exceptional Villa Lucille, inhabited by a family of three. From the perspective of the road, the house does not reveal its unique architecture or interior luxury to passersby. The architectural design of the building was conceived by German architect Kenan Deniz from the Deniz Architekten studio, who invited the TEAM Proje studio to collaborate on the project. "In the last ten years, there has been a significant increase in demand for architects and interior designers in Turkey. Projects often involve multiple parties simultaneously – from the architect to the interior designer, to construction companies and individual craftsmen," says Aykut Mete, an interior designer from TEAM Proje, and continues: "In Turkey, we respect experts, which is why division of labor is a completely normal phenomenon here. Kenan Deniz asked us for support and collaboration in the design of the interior of Villa Lucille. Together, we harmonized the project into a unity that fully suited the owners."

Nature in the Interior

Villa Lucille features a composition of geometric shapes and simple construction lines in both vertical and horizontal planes in its exterior appearance. Already from the road, it impresses with large glazed areas, which become even more pronounced when viewed from the garden. Corner metal structures and aluminum systems give the building a minimalist design and provide unobstructed views from the interior in almost all directions. "We aimed for maximum connectivity between the internal environment and the external one, as well as allowing natural daylight to enter the interior to illuminate every important detail and give the inhabitants a sense of absolute freedom," describes Aykut Mete.

The house with an open façade features an interior designed by the architects that combines basic materials such as steel, concrete, and stone. These sensibly cold luxury materials feel friendlier and warmer to the inhabitants due to the generous use of wood and natural oak decor, as well as the earthy tones of the color palette. "In our projects, we prefer using natural and naturally-looking materials, whose visual forms can adapt to any design due to numerous alternatives and a variety of colors and textures," explains the designer from TEAM Proje regarding the choice of materials. The uniqueness and identity of the spaces are preserved through harmonious transitions of materials.

In Accordance with the Identity of the House

The main entrance to the house features unusually high doors that open with hardware manufactured in the Czech Republic. "Not only for the entrance doors but for all interior doors, including those leading to the shower cubicle or sauna, we used handles and grips from the MINIMAL collection by Czech manufacturer M&T," informs Aykut Mete and describes the first encounter with M&T products: "It was the owners of the building who directed us to this handle manufacturer. Once we reviewed M&T's range, we felt that the comprehensive MINIMAL series was designed specifically for our project. Initially, we ordered samples, whose timeless design and craftsmanship convinced us that they were the right hardware for this exceptional realization." And Roman Ulich, the chief designer of the Czech family manufactory M&T, which produces ethically sustainable door and window hardware adds: "The architects of Villa Lucille were particularly excited about the possibility of unifying the hardware throughout the entire building. The MINIMAL collection indeed offers matching designs for door handles, grips, escutcheons, door stops, as well as handles for windows and HS portals." To maintain the color concept and identity of the building, the architects chose hardware from eighteen available finishes in a black matte titanium finish.

Open Spaces

Behind the entrance doors lies an entrance hall that surprises visitors with its airy space open to the upper floor, seamlessly transitioning into the main living area of the house. This entry space is visually separated from the rest of the interior only by a partial wall placed directly opposite the entrance doors. Behind it also opens a dining area with a large-format HS portal that accesses the terrace. To the left of the dining table, the kitchen, characterized by a monochromatic combination of black tall cabinets and a white kitchen island, is accessible through glass double doors. On the opposite side of the dining area, there is a living room accessible from the entrance hall. Visually, however, it is connected to the dining room through an opening in the wall with a hanging fireplace. In addition to the central living space, the ground floor also features three guest rooms with private bathrooms, technical facilities, and a garage.

A staircase in the right entrance area leads to the private floor of the house's residents. The main corridor opposite the staircase passes above the open dining area and the entrance space, directing towards the children's room and one of the studies. Directly to the left of the staircase is the second study and also a gym. To the right of the staircase, one enters the spacious master bedroom, which has two separate walk-in closets and a private bathroom with exclusive marble cladding, hanging faucets, and an adjacent sauna.

Considering the Lifestyle

In addition to the ground floor and first floor, the building also comprises an underground living level, which is almost entirely dedicated to relaxation purposes. It contains a spa area consisting of a Turkish bath, sauna, massage pool, shock shower, relaxation, and bar zones. For additional leisure activities, there is a private cinema as well. The adjacent garden also calls for relaxation with a spacious swimming pool, which rises only a few centimeters above ground level. The garden area also includes a garden house with a grill and seating area.

The entire project was completed relatively quickly – it took two years from the design to the family's moving into the house. "Collaboration with the architect and clients was based on mutual trust. As with each of our projects, we considered the lifestyle of the owners during the design process so that the interior was intertwined with their personal needs, ideas, and visions, complemented by practical suggestions from us. Everything proceeded in perfect synergy," concludes interior designer Aykut Mete contentedly.

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Technical Details

Project name: Villa Lucille
Location of the building: Istanbul, Turkey
Building execution: DOTA Construction Turkey
Architect: Kenan Deniz, www.denizarchitekten.de
Interior: TEAM Proje, interior designer Aykut Mete, www.teamprj.com

TEAM Proje is a dynamic office. We mainly focus on interior design, but we also have experts in landscape architecture – we strive to integrate the interior with the landscape as much as possible. We often participate in projects that have a completed shell construction. We know that we don't have to design everything for the building to be perfect. We trust other experts and welcome different collaborations. They are always interesting and mutually inspiring. For every project, we pay attention to the precision of work and symbiosis with the client.

Photo realization: Gürkan Akay for M&T

More projects with M&T handles here: Projects | Architecture | M&T 1997 (kliky-mt.cz)