New York studio Light and Air Architecture has retrofitted a two-bedroom apartment in Brooklyn with ample custom cabinetry and a spiral staircase.
The two-storey home is located inside a former schoolhouse building in Brooklyn's Prospect Heights neighbourhood.

Built in 1895 along Sterling Place, the landmarked structure is constructed with brick, sandstone and terracotta in the romanesque revival style.
Inside, much of the building was overhauled to accommodate modern residences, including the apartment renovated by local studio Light and Air Architecture (L/AND/A).

Measuring 1,200 square feet (111 square metres), the Sterling Place project was overhauled to feature an open-plan layout for its main living space, which occupies the upper level. L/AND/A removed existing partitions, particularly a wall that divided the main floor into three separate rooms. Now, the home is arranged around a volumetric formwork built from Baltic birch.

The structure divides different areas ? particularly a kitchen, a bathroom and a living room ? and provides ample storage.
"Though modest in size, scope and budget, this once heavily partitioned apartment is transformed by the insertion of a volumetric armature that creates spatial diversity in the absence of traditional rooms," said L/AND/A.

The custom built-in unit spans from the main entrance and encloses a central nook, and concludes with cabinetry in the kitchen.
A slatted wood wall or "screen-shelf" conceals a co...