A Japanese-influenced renovation transformed a dark Conduit Road apartment and provided ample space for its owner's art collection. One can never get enough of savvy ideas to make the most of compact living spaces. This Mid-Levels apartment offers a host of space-saving solutions in an interior that offers more than meets the eye. Designed by property development project manager Roger Michaels (tel: 2234 9498), the 800 sq ft unit on Conduit Road was formerly a standard three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment. The owner, British businessman George Yates, gave Michaels free rein on the redesign, knowing the latter had plenty of experience in dealing with small residences. 'I have always lived in apartments in expensive cities,' says Michaels. 'I know you have to make the most of your space and find different ways of storage. I lived for eight years in Japan and the Japanese are the masters of small-space living. It taught me a huge amount.' In a stunning display of poor design, the apartment's original layout had the bedrooms at the front of the apartment, hiding what should have been its focal point: panoramic views of the harbour. 'It was completely crazy,' says Michaels. 'So we switched it around.' He knocked down as many walls as possible to allow in the maximum amount of light and introduce a loft-like feel. He replaced the bedrooms with an open-plan living and dining area and created one bedroom towards the rear of the apartment. The kitchen walls were removed to create an open kitchen with adjacent study, divided by a wide countertop. Now, when you come into the apartment, the space unfurls, drawing the eye forwards and making the apartment feel bigger than it is. 'The idea was that you come through the entrance and have a little corridor in front of you that opens out into the bigger space,' says Michaels. To keep the different functions of the apartment organised, Michaels built two wooden islands: floor- to-ceiling boxes. One to the left contains a bathroom and storage area (the idea was to put all stowable items, including clothes, appliances, paperwork and DVDs, into one space) and one to the right contains the bedroom. The left island is clad with horizontal wood panels and the right one features shoji-screen doors inset with glass panels, all of the same width. 'The horizontal bands lead you into the apartment,' says Michaels. 'They also subtly try to give an impression of more space.' Light woods enliven the interior throughout. Michaels chose bleached walnut for the walls and bleached oak for the floors. 'I like the feel of wood in that it warms up the space,' he says. Such a lightness of touch is also evidenced in the shoji-screen doors. The oversized doors, each of which turns on a central pivot, seal off the bedroom from the public areas. 'During the day the doors can be left open for airing and at night they can be closed for privacy,' says Michaels. 'Originally, I used clear glass panels because I wanted to let the light into the centre of the apartment but it bothered me that you could see into the bedroom. So I covered the glass panels with frosted plastic sheeting.' Every wall in the apartment, both wooden and plaster, has been covered with large pieces from Yates' collection of contemporary art sourced in Asia, including Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, China and South Korea. 'I've been collecting for a couple of years; I mainly buy from the countries I travel to. I also buy at auction.' His furnishings are also sourced from far and wide. 'Most of the furnishings are pieces I have picked up over the past 20 years or so,' Yates says. There's an authentic Murano chandelier and a pair of art-deco chairs found in a flea market in Paris; a comfortable sofa by Philippe Starck; and a large collection of books stored in a flexible bookcase (see Tried & Tested). Yates is pleased with the redesign. 'I love the living room and the views. It's not a big space but the sense of space you have is great. Now you can stand in the middle and you have amazing views of Hong Kong; it feels like you are floating.' 1 A set of three slim ledges, each measuring 10cm deep, provides space for displaying art in the open kitchen-study zone. The walls of the wooden 'island', which contains storage space, also prove useful for hanging works of art, including those by Anupong Kachacheewa from Thailand (top) and Shen Hua (below). Shen Hua is represented in Hong Kong by Schoeni Art Gallery (21 Old Bailey Street, Central, tel: 2869 8802; www.schoeni.com.hk ). 2 Artworks adorn the walls around the dining table. Behind the table is a painting by Indonesian artist Yunizar, represented in Hong Kong by Sin Sin Fine Art (1 Prince's Terrace, Mid-Levels, tel: 2858 5072; www.sinsinfineart.com ). To the left is a work by Natee Utarit from Thailand; to the right is a set of three works by South Korean Kim Hyun Sik. The dining table cost about HK$6,000 from Tequila Kola (1/F, Horizon Plaza, 2 Lee Wing Street, Ap Lei Chau, tel: 2877 3295; www.tequilakola.com ); the chairs were custom made for about HK$2,500 each by Artura (109 Queen's Road East, tel: 2527 2893). The pair of table lamps cost HK$3,600 from Wah Tung (59 Hollywood Road, Central, tel: 2543 2823). 3 The kitchen and study area are positioned to the left of the entrance. Roger Michaels turned a dark, pokey kitchen into a spacious, light-filled one by removing the dividing wall and using a wide Corian countertop to separate the kitchen from the study area. Storage is extensive: the white cupboards are made of Formica; the wooden cupboards use bleached walnut. Beneath the countertop (see photo 1) are made-to-measure cupboards that can be accessed from both sides (kitchen implements on one side and files and work equipment on the other). Hanging over the countertop is a Fili D'Angelo light by Album of Italy from Elements (2/F, Star Commercial Building, 366 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, tel: 2295 0777). 4 On the left is a storage and bathroom island clad in bleached walnut wood. Covering the floor is bleached oak, which was supplied by the contractor for HK$650 a square metre. The pair of art-deco armchairs cost HK$5,000 many years ago from Les Puces de Paris Saint-Ouen flea market (nearest metro: Porte de Clignancourt; www.parispuces . com). On top of the tall speaker stands a bronze sculpture by Natee Utarit. 5 Adding glamour to the home is a Murano glass chandelier Yates bought 20 years ago from Les Puces. The Lazy Working Sofa, by Philippe Starck for Cassina, is available from Anterra (5 Bluepool Road, Happy Valley, tel: 2577 5716) and costs HK$44,000 (195cm wide; a 215cm version costs HK$46,800). The silk scatter cushions are from Sheryia Curtain Company (shop 2, 1 Lyndhurst Terrace, Central, tel: 2525 6596). The 19th-century coffee table cost HK$3,800 from Chine Gallery (42A Hollywood Road, Central, tel: 2543 0023; www.chinegallery.com ). 6 Battleship-grey walls contrast with the bleached oak floor and the brushed stainless-steel door in the entrance. The 19th-century Chinese wooden bench cost HK$1,800 from The Legends (75A Hollywood Road, Central, tel: 2543 2820). The painting is by Indian artist Shuvaprasanna. 7 Japanese influence is clear in the master bedroom, with its pair of pivoting shoji-screen-style doors, made by the contractor to Michaels' specifications. They cost HK$23,000 for the pair, including the central pivot mechanism. The white Marset lamp, by Jakob Timpe, is available in Hong Kong through Cefion Lighting (418 Jaffe Road, Wan Chai, tel: 3580 0988). A 19th-century Chinese travelling medicine chest is used as a bedside table. 8 Originally the apartment had two bathrooms side by side. Michaels chose to keep one bathroom, enlarging it by half and using the rest of the space for storage. The bathroom is clad in marble that cost HK$2,700 a square metre from Sungate Marble (room 1104, Tung Chin Commercial Centre, 193 Lockhart Road, Wan Chai, tel: 2979 5556). A flexible shaving mirror was installed in one corner of the shower to enable simultaneous showering and shaving. The shower fittings are by Grohe (39/F, AIA Tower, 183 Electric Road, North Point, tel: 2806 0611; www.grohe.com ). tried & tested Double deckers To maximise space and add a flexible element to the bookcase, Roger Michaels devised a system of mobile wooden inserts that enable books to be stacked two rows high. 'Because of height restrictions we added movable shelf units that can be put anywhere on the shelves to give room to store two layers of books,' says Michaels. 'Split-level shelving as it were.' The unmodified distance between shelves in the bleached walnut bookcase is 38cm (note: the shelves were designed to the same dimensions as the surrounding wooden wall panels and the glass panels on the shoji screen doors). The 10 freestanding wooden inserts measure either 22cm or 20cm high. The inserts can be moved around to meet different storage needs and create visual impact. The bookcase and the shelf units were all built by the contractor, Crossmax (tel: 2690 1223). Styling: Esther van Wijck