01
Reception
A travertine platform, low seating, coloured pendants and a carved rock planter.
Residential
P257 | The Shadow Box
Location
Bvlgari Residences, Dubai
Type
Penthouse
Area
400 m²
Status
Completed 2021
Lead Architects
Ramzi Jizi & Darine Jabeili
Photography
Alex Jeffries
Recognition
The idea
Light, stone and a carved rock.
The Shadow Box is a 400 m² penthouse on a man-made island in Dubai, with a terrace that looks from the sea to the city skyline. Its long facade takes the sun all year, so brass-finished panels slide along the glass, cut with a pattern of overlapping leaves, and turn daylight into moving shadow across the rooms.
Inside, a multi-level travertine platform lifts the reception into a low, Moroccan-style seating layout under coloured pendants; at one end the platform holds a single carved rock of three tonnes that serves as a giant planter. Pieces were gathered from far away — volcanic basalt from Pompeii, side tables from Bali, fabrics from New Zealand — and a panelled library with a ladder holds a collection of rare books.
Material palette
Travertine
Reception platform
Brass leaf screen
Sliding facade panels
Teak root
Lounge chairs
Crimson wall
Master bedroom
About the project
From a stone platform to a crimson room
The visit begins in the reception, where the raised stone platform sets the seating close to the floor and the large rock holds its planting at one end. Beside it, the dining area and kitchen gather around a long table. The library comes next, a darker, panelled room with its ladder. A corridor then narrows the route, with niches glowing red along its length, and opens into the master bedroom. The other bedrooms follow: one in deep blue, one made for the children.
Travertine forms the reception platform, its warm, porous surface holding the levels together. On the facade, the brass leaf screens slide across the glass and do the work of shading, while their finish warms the daylight they let through. The lounge chairs are made from teak root, whose irregular form gives the seating a sculptural quality. In the master bedroom, a crimson wall gives the room its colour and enclosure. The penthouse is at Bvlgari Residences, Dubai.
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