Rose Uniacke Layers a London Collector's Apartment

A 1930 Jean Prouvé bookcase, still bearing its original paint, became the anchor of the main sitting room in Rose Uniacke's latest London project — and, in her words, "the driver for everything around it."

The apartment sits in a historic 1910 building in west London and measures 3,111 sq ft. Uniacke worked closely with her client, a collector, who wanted to improve the apartment conversion and create a comfortable London base for his family. The commission encompassed bespoke joinery and lighting design.

Uniacke kept the building's original architecture at the forefront. "While the interior is now fairly contemporary, with minimal detailing, the original architecture retains a strong presence, particularly through the bold arched windows that frame beautiful, expansive views," she tells Wallpaper*.

She sourced rare midcentury works by Jean Prouvé, Charlotte Perriand and Jean Dunand, and paired these with contemporary elements. The client's artworks anchor the colour and mood of each room, and Uniacke added furniture and objects of equal standing, guided by her initial conversations with the client.

"It led me towards collectible French furniture of the 20th century and pieces from contemporary Japan, alongside my own designs from the Rose Uniacke Editions range, and I wanted to include some pieces from antiquity," she says. "As always, the pieces led the design."

Uniacke stresses that the home should not feel like a gallery. "I wanted the spaces to feel considered and layered. The room should always come first, with the beautiful things within it coming second. The overall feeling needed to be comfortable, welcoming and light, with a sense of ease," she says.

Fabrics and paints respond to light, objects and furniture. For this project, the palette shifts from white and pale blue-green through to soft pink and dark red. Fabrics line the bedroom walls, adding softness.

The Prouvé bookcase set the tone. "I like the way there is often a lightness to 20th-century design that worked particularly well in this apartment, alongside the large windows and open views," Uniacke notes. "It was made in 1930 as a special commission and is an important and unique piece, complete with its original paint. It was the right scale, the perfect colour, and had an interesting feeling of airiness that felt completely at home next to the windows."

The sitting room holds further treasures. They include an Egyptian carved tablet from 332–30 BC depicting Ptolemy III, which retains traces of its striking original paint; a ceramic Pyramide by Jacques and Dani Ruelland from 1980; and a Jean Prouvé wall light from 1950.

"I like these kinds of echoes and conversations between pieces, particularly when they cross periods and cultures. The overall feeling is one of elegant informality and ease," she says.

Despite the significant art, the atmosphere avoids feeling precious. And the project will not stand still. Asked when a room is finished, Uniacke answers plainly: "I don't think a room is ever done, is it? It might achieve a certain balance that makes it ready to be lived in, but rooms are always going to evolve. In this case, being the home of a collector, things come into the collection and move around. Rooms change over time with the people who live in them. I'm excited by rooms that continue to evolve; it's part of the fun."