staircase by atmos studio

staircase designed by atmos studio

the sculptural staircase, designed by alex haw’s london-based atmos studio for a residential project, recreates the structural flow of the living spaces, incorporating the pattern of the house’s skirting board into its form. in accordance with the greater layout of the space, which seeks to visually connect rooms and other living spaces, the risers of the staircase extend into the bathroom space below, stretching along the wall and around existing furniture, to integrate fully into the space.

the stair was digitally fabricated, using sheets of MDF and oak that were digitally cut directly from the architecture team’s design plans into the individual pieces of the structure. each component was engineered to slot together, creating a unified form once assembled.

from the designer: ‘the stair is a continuation and intensification of the simple graphic skirting board lines that trace their way through the house. as they turn the corner into the stair void, they expand like a genie released from a lamp, curling and separating and bifurcating from the wall to form the delicate edge of the stair treads, lifting into the air to rise as the veil of the balustrade. this veil hangs gently from above as a series of thin paired threads, softly pulled back at the entry to allow movement past, gently splaying around the corner to meet and carry the arriving visitor onwards & upwards.

the risers of the steps above extend as vegetal beams to the bathroom below, growing from the structural wall like the boughs of a tree, holding aloft a lattice of vegetation above while ensnaring the toilet throne below, their timber extensions flowing around basins and shelves and into the details of the walls beyond. this detailed and sinuous journey continues throughout the house, a simple line climbing to open and form a pocket of light or furnishing, carrying the eye ever onwards in its adventure through the home.’

left: view from bottom; right: view from top