Colourful Moscow Apartment

WORDS Amelia Brown IMAGES Enjoy Home Studio

A small apartment in Russia’s capital was transformed with bright, happy colours.

Picture this little 80m² Moscow apartment before: a typical example of “stalinka”, the architectural style associated with the socialist realism school of art and architecture of the Soviet Union under the leadership of Joseph Stalin (between 1933 and 1955), which amounted to a narrow hallway, a small kitchen, bathroom and separate WC.

For the after transformation, a palette was built on deep blues complemented by cheerful shades of yellow, combined in a highly strategic rather than random way to play off one another.

The apartment is furnished and decorated with typical forms of American furniture, vintage design and shaker-style cabinetry. The retro atmosphere is emphasised by geometric prints on carpets and textiles, seen particularly in the living room and bedroom, and the lighting. A heritage Ella suspension lamp from DelightFULL, a style icon of the fifties and sixties, hangs above the dining room table.

The designer responsible was Nadya Zotova, a master at mixing colours to decorate a space, and founder of Enjoy Home Studio, an architectural and interior design studio based in Moscow.