Wooden structural elements at this loft apartment in Brooklyn were uncovered and retreated during renovation work undertaken by local studio General Assembly.
The Gowanus Loft occupies a portion of the top floor of a converted factory, once used to spin jute vegetable fibre into coarse threads.

The building is located in the typically industrial west Brooklyn neighbourhood of Gowanus, which is undergoing rapid regeneration.
Recently completed projects in the area include the transformation of a factory into a colourful co-working space and a house shielded by a metal mesh screen.

General Assembly wanted to retain the character of the apartment's original features, but turn it into a brighter and more desirable home.
"This loft in a former jute mill was in a state of disrepair when we got our hands on it," General Assembly told Dezeen. "Our approach was to combine many of the original elements with modern touches to create a space with a clean, contemporary, yet raw feeling."
The first task was to reorganise the layout, which was preventing light from reaching some of the key spaces. The solution was to form an open-plan living, dining and kitchen space at one end.
"We started by redesigning the plan and opening up the kitchen to take advantage of the natural sunlight from the window-wall encompassing one full side of the apartment," said the studio, which recently added a charred-wood pool house to a property on Shelter Island.

Private spac...