Paris-based lifestyle brand Kitsuné has opened a cafe next to its boutique in Silver Lake, Los Angeles, both with minimalist interiors featuring white oak and stainless steel.
The interiors of the new Cafe Kitsuné and the renovated Maison Kitsuné store were designed by co-founder Masaya Kuroki to reflect the brand’s French-Japanese culture as well as the West Coast setting.
The Cafe Kitsuné interior includes a mural by Jeffrey Sinich that imagines the space as an old-school market
Facing Sunset Boulevard on the east side of the city, this is the brand’s fourth cafe in North America – following locations in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Vancouver – and its first in LA.
“A sprawling city of diverse findings, from cutting-edge restaurants to pockets of art and architecture second to none, LA has lent design inspiration and a backdrop to several campaigns for the fashion house,” said the Kitsuné team.
White oak tables and surfaces are set against stainless steel counters and panelling for a minimalist look
“Now, it’s the perfect setting for Café Kitsuné, a physical extension of the brand’s Franco-Japanese DNA, and reinvention of the classic Parisian cafe and wine bar experience with a Japanese twist,” they added.
The building’s red-tile exterior and poured concrete flooring were preserved, and hand-painted signage by Californian artist Jeffrey Sincich was added over the large street-facing windows.
Burnt orange dining chairs and upholstered benches highlight the colours of the mural
Inside the 700-square-foot (65-square-metre) cafe, white oak tables and brushed stainless-steel counters feature alongside burnt orange dining chairs and upholstered benches.
Another Sincich mural covers the full length of a wall, offering “a whimsical take on Café Kitsuné’s standard appearance” and presenting the space as an “old-school market”.
A speaker system by Japanese audio company Rotel was installed in the cafe “to provide a top-notch sound experience for customers”, according to Kitsuné.
Next door in the boutique, a similar material palette is used for elements including a built-in storage and display unit across the back wall.
The existing Maison Kitsuné boutique next door has also received a refresh
White oak forms the framing, shelves and doors that lead to the stock and fitting rooms, while ribbed stainless-steel sheets provide a backdrop for the items on show.
More oak was used for the minimalist service counter and panelling behind, and a bright blue table sits in the centre to add a pop of colour.
White oak and stainless steel are repeated in this space to create a visual connection with the cafe
Kitsuné was founded by 2002 by Kuroki and Gildas Loaëc and encompasses the fashion brand, Maison Kitsuné; a music label, Kitsuné Musique; and its line of cafes, bars and restaurants.
Back in 2017, French designer Mathieu Lehanneur designed the Kitsuné store interior in New York’s Soho, adding snaking metal rails for displaying garments.
Period details are mixed with contemporary interventions inside these renovated apartments in Paris, built in the mid-19th century during Georges-Eugène Haussmann’s reconstruction of the French capital.
In his role as the prefect of the Seine département under Napoleon III, Baron Haussmann was responsible for creating the network of boulevards that still define the city’s urban landscape today.
The homogenous apartment buildings flanking these boulevards were designed to strict guidelines, all made from cream-coloured stone with a steep four-sided mansard roof and no more than six storeys.
Although Haussmann was less prescriptive about the building’s interiors, they generally feature high ceilings and parquet floors alongside elaborate mouldings and boiserie.
Read on for six examples of how architects and interior designers have brought these apartments into the 21st century, including a book lover’s loft and two flats combined to form a family home in the Marais.
This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring bedrooms with minimalist interiors, concrete kitchens and marble-lined bathrooms.
Photo by Salem Mostefaoui
Wood Ribbon apartment by Toledano + Architects
Original details such as parquet floors and ornate ceiling plasterwork were retained in the renovation of this apartment, which had been left largely untouched since the end of the 19th century.
But local studio Toledano + Architects tore down several partition walls to create a more open floorplan, traversed by a snaking plywood wall that roughly divides the apartment into three zones while providing tactical storage in the living room and kitchen.
“I really wanted to enhance this dichotomy between ancient and contemporary,” founder Gabrielle Toledano told Dezeen. “It’s very relevant in a city like Paris where both are in a constant dialogue.”
Find out more about Wood Ribbon apartment ›
Photo by Giulio Ghirardi
Apartment Canal Saint Martin by Rodolphe Parente
French interior designer Rodolphe Parente made only a few minor architectural interventions when overhauling this apartment in Canal Saint-Martin, exposing long sealed-off doorways and creating a hybrid dining room and kitchen.
Instead, he modernised the apartment by contrasting original details such as mouldings with unexpected contemporary details, colours and the “radical” art collection of the owner.
In the bedroom, a vivid purple rug clashes with caramel-coloured walls while in the living room, period wall panelling highlights the modernity of the sofa and the glossy coffee table.
Find out more about Apartment Canal Saint Martin ›
Photo by Olivier Martin Gambier
Apartment XIV by Studio Razavi
With several partition walls removed, French office Studio Razavi created a new layout for this apartment by slotting a multi-faceted furniture block made from wood-fibre panels into the remaining gaps.
Its staggered profile creates sightlines between the different areas of the house while framing some of the building’s original Hausmann-style ceiling mouldings.
Painted in a muted slate grey, the furniture block performs a different function in every room – acting as a storage cabinet in the kitchen, a TV mount in the living room and a desk in the study.
Find out more about Apartment XIV ›
Photo by Stephan Julliard
Marais apartment by Sophie Dries
Two flats become one 100-square-metre residence in this renovation project that French architect Sophie Dries completed in trendy Marais for a family of four.
Period details were painted in simple white, providing a contrast with new additions such as the Hans J Wegner chairs and the dyed linen curtains in the living room
“The Haussmannian style was refined and pared down, in order to introduce minimal lines better suited to a modern family,” Dries explained.
Find out more about Marais apartment ›
Enter the Diamond by Atelier 37.2
An additional bathroom is housed inside the three-metre-high birchwood volume at the centre of this residence in the French capital, designed by local studio Atelier 37.2.
The sharp lines of the diamond-shaped structure contrast with the apartment’s ornate ceiling mouldings and white-painted walls.
“This tension generates a fictional potential that plays with the imagination of the inhabitants,” said the studio.
Find out more about Enter the Diamond ›
Photo by Stéphane Chalmeau
Arsenal loft by h2o Architectes
This three-room loft is set inside the mansard roof of a Haussmann-era building in the Arsenale district, which originally served as servant’s quarters for the apartments below.
Parisian firm h2o Architectes opened up its floor plan to make the most of the top-floor views while installing wooden bookshelves to define different areas and house the extensive library of the apartment’s book-loving owner.
Their timber construction creates a visual connection with the original parquet floors, while the white paint used to brighten walls and other structural elements continues onto some sections of the floor.
Find out more about Arsenal loft ›
This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring bedrooms with minimalist interiors, concrete kitchens and marble-lined bathrooms.
mobile architectural office unites parisian urban archetypes
At the intersection of three Parisian urban situations in the heart of the French capital sits Mobile Architectural Office’s multifaceted new residential complex. Comprising six housing units and a commercial space, the project is concealed behind a white ribbed metal skin that unites the characteristic qualities of the city’s neighboring faubourien architecture with discreet modenature, the cohesive neatness of the brick facades, and the classical architectural language reinterpreted by postmodern structures from the 1980s.
Across its five stories, the program configures six dwelling units, including two triplexes on the ground floor, above a commercial space. Each unit is arranged around a central courtyard, its inner facade clad in natural wood, and is served by a communal staircase and exterior landings for shared uses between neighbors.
6 housing units concealed behind a ribbed metal skin
The site is located at the corner of rue Robert Blache and rue du Terrage. To echo its suburban fabric, the project reinterprets the fusion of faubourienne architecture, compact volumetry, facades ordered by regular vertical openings, discreet modenature, and simple expressions of construction.
On the ground floor on rue Robert Blache, the team at Mobile Architectural Office has injected a strong sense of animation along the streetfront by integrating several retail spaces. Access to the residential flats is created via a bright walk-through hall overlooking the adjacent Rue du Terrage. On the upper floors, all dwellings are double or triple oriented and punctuated with uniform windows offering optimal natural light to inhabitants. Inside, some structural elements of the wooden joinery have been revealed in discreet, natural expressions.
Mobile Architectural Office has developed a structural principle based on both vertical and horizontal prefabricated wood, with solid facades and floors from the Basque Country. This enables low carbon development and efficient construction, allowing the structure to be assembled within ten days. Further, in order to facilitate the large spans in the commercial premise and the relationship with the ground, the structure of the ground floor is made of concrete.
On the roof, a rainwater collection system captures precipitation and feeds the planter above the bicycle room and the green space on the ground floor. A recovery system in the tank supplies the taps in the common areas and all the sanitary facilities.
Weathered walls and concrete floors feature in this design gallery that creative collective The Guild of Saint Luke and architecture firm Studio ECOA have set up inside a former factory in Paris.
Spread across one storey and two mezzanines, GSL Gallery provides a mixture of studio and exhibition space for the group of architects, artists and artisans that make up The Guild of Saint Luke.
GSL Gallery sits inside an old factory
The gallery occupies a disused factory in Pantin, a neighbourhood in northeastern Paris with a growing arts and culture scene.
In recent years, the building operated as a classic car garage but was purchased by art dealer and gallerist Hadrien de Montferrand during the pandemic with the aim of transforming the site into a gallery.
The building’s concrete floors were retained
De Montferrand enlisted locally based Studio ECOA to carry out all the necessary architectural changes and asked The Guild of Saint Luke (GSL) to steer the building’s design and become its first tenant.
“We were charmed by the space and found the patina and raw walls to be punk and accidentally on-point,” GSL’s creative director John Whelan told Dezeen.
Clean white panelling was added to give the space the look of a typical gallery
“Working in close collaboration with Studio ECOA, we proposed a project that retained all of the rawness of the spaces with very minimal design interventions,” he continued.
“We felt that it would be criminal to interfere with the existing mood, which is melancholic and eerily beautiful.”
Studio ECOA restored the building’s facade and aluminium roof, as well as preserving its original concrete flooring.
A live-work space can be found on GSL Gallery’s first mezzanine
Boxy storage units were built on either side of the front door to form a corridor-like entrance to the ground floor, where white panelling was added across the lower half of the patchy, time-worn walls to emulate the look of a typical gallery.
This ground-floor space will be used to display a changing roster of avant-garde installations, which GSL hopes to finance by using the gallery’s workspaces to produce more commercial projects for design brands.
“Commercial endeavours will help to fund more proactive ‘passion projects’, where we will exhibit GSL’s own designs along with designers and artists that we admire,” Whelan said.
“Our chief motivation is creative freedom, as we hope to produce installations that do not necessarily adhere to a commercial brief.”
Bathroom facilities are contained in a mirrored volume
The building’s two existing mezzanines were cut back to create a central atrium, which draws natural light into the gallery’s interior.
The lower mezzanine now houses a hybrid live-work space where GSL members or visiting artists can stay the night.
This space is centred by a large Donald Judd-style wooden table and also accommodates a bed, kitchenette and a bathroom concealed within a mirrored volume.
Metal sanitary ware reflects the light in the bathroom
Extra exhibition space is provided on the secondary mezzanine that sits beneath the building’s roof, directly under a series of expansive skylights.
Prior to now, GSL has largely specialised in hospitality interiors – restoring historic brasseries across Paris and devising opulent restaurants such as Nolinski near the Musée du Louvre and Maison Francois in London.
The lower mezzanine also houses a bed and a large table
“We hope that the gallery will be an extension of the aesthetic that we are trying to develop, embracing new ideas but never abandoning the pursuit of beauty,” Whelan explained.
“It feels like a good time to do so, as Covid has cleared and a mood of optimism in design has emerged. This bracing, minimal space feels almost like a clean slate and invites a multitude of possibilities.”
The second mezzanine sits directly underneath the building’s skylights
Other recent additions to Paris’s cultural landscape include a major extension of the Musée Albert Kahn by Kengo Kuma and Associates, which made room for a historic collection of 72,000 photographs.
Elsewhere in the French capital, Bruno Gaudin Architectes just completed a 15-year renovation of the National Library of France, incorporating a number of new circulation routes and public spaces.
French design agency Chzon studio has added archways and fountains that reference iconic Parisian monuments to a departure lounge at the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris.
Chzon studio redesigned the boarding gate area in Terminal 2G with the aim of creating a dynamic representation of Paris’ design and history in a typically utilitarian area of the airport.
The vast space is punctuated by white columns and sculptural installations
The 1,300-square-meter space is populated by rounded seating in dark blue and green upholstery, which takes aesthetic cues from the 1960s and 1970s, arranged in benches, booths and pairs.
To zone the space and instill privacy, the studio added partitions and expressive white sculptures by artist studio Les Simonnets, which double as alternative bench seating.
References to Paris are made at varying scales throughout the space
The studio made reference to iconic Parisian monuments by installing archways that nod to the Arc de Triomphe, as well as a fountain that is reminiscent of the water feature in the Jardin du Luxembourg and surrounded by green metal chairs similar to those found in Paris’ parks.
Rows of wooden tables have been inlaid with chess boards in another reference to the parks of Paris. Passengers can use these as workspaces, to eat at, or to play games on while waiting for flights.
The miniature fountain is a focal point within the terminal
As well as designing some of the lighting for the interior in-house, the studio also sourced and installed antique lighting and other decorative objects from the city’s St Ouen flea market, including giant wall lights and aluminium sunshades.
To keep the space relevant to its function, Chzon also made references to aeroplane design by employing metallic details, patterned finishes and reclining plane-style seats designed by Italian architect and furniture designer Osvaldo Borsani.
“[The design] dramatises the boarding lounge while keeping the passenger informed,” Dorothée Meilichzon, founder of Chzon studio, said of the interior design.
“The departure lounge becomes a smooth transition between the Paris that we are leaving and the plane that is going to take off.”
The mural is applied to perforated sheets and wraps around the walls above the windows
The space also features a mural inspired by the work of French painter Sonia Delaunay that sits above the windows, which overlook the runways and allow views of planes taking off and landing.
This fresco also references symbols used in airport signage and carries similar rounded motifs to the ones present in the retro-style seating and lighting.
Rounded elements in furniture, lighting and decor reference the design of the 1960s and 1970s
Charles de Gaulle Airport, also known as Roissy Airport, is the French capital’s principle airport.
Other airport-related projects published on Dezeen include the cosy remodelling of an airport in Colorado, USA by Gensler and an airport that contains the world’s tallest indoor waterfall by Safdie architects.
The mid-century architecture and roadside diners of the American west informed the interior of this nostalgic hamburger restaurant in Paris designed by CUT Architectures.
Located in Paris’s Citadium – a multi-brand department store on Boulevard Hausmann that is focused on lifestyle, streetwear, and sneaker culture – PNY Citadium is the hamburger chain’s seventh opening in the city.
Top image: yellow booth seating has a mid-century look. Above: marquee lettering announces the menu
Paris studio CUT Architectures – which previously designed PNY’s first, second, third and fourth outposts – was invited back to create this location around the theme “electric tropical diner”.
The interior, which features neon tube lighting, aluminium walls and embossed stainless steel, seeks to capture the “vivid and unique” energy of America’s West Coast.
Bar stools are paired with circular tables
In particular, the architects looked to the mid-century architecture of Venice Beach in Los Angeles, the Palm Springs’ houses of Albert Frey, and Palm Desert sunsets.
Set out over 75 square metres, the 51-seat restaurant is headed up by a curved crenellated aluminium bar that lines the back wall.
The back of the bar is clad in aluminium while overhead a retro lightbox sign that displays the menu wraps around the top.
The crenellated aluminium bar reflects light across the restaurant
“The place is conceived as an architectural parenthesis set in the Citadium; a roadside diner whose bar is clad in crenellated aluminium like a longhaul truck crossing the United States,” said CUT Architectures.
“The back bar is dressed in embossed stainless steel with a radiant pattern that increases the reflections.”
Seating is laid out over a series of classic diner booths with banquette seating, as well as a series of tall bar tables and stools.
The booths are positioned along the entrance to the department store and lined with large circular glass panels, lit by rows of warm neon tubes that fade from yellow to orange and pink.
Sun-like panels were placed at the ends of tables for privacy
Designed to recall the setting sun on the Pacific Ocean, the panels provide privacy for diners and create a visual boundary between the restaurant and the rest of the department store.
“To achieve the specific hues and quality of light we wanted we used old school signage neon tubes instead of LED lights,” the studio told Dezeen.
Sunset hues reflect off the surfaces
The bases of the taller tables are made from large steel cylinders lacquered in a faded yellow hue.
The cylinders pierce through glossy white circular tabletops to create planter centrepieces that are filled with arid vegetation native to the Californian desert.
Other sunset-informed eatery designs include designer Yota Kakuda’s sunset-hued counter installed within a Tokyo cheese tart shop.
While in a Hong Kong cafe, architecture firms Studio Etain Ho and Absence from Island pay homage to Australia’s spectacular sunsets with a terracotta colour scheme and semi-circular forms.
