Hungarian firm Position Collective has renovated a Budapest studio flat, designing a furniture and storage system that caters for temporary occupants booking via Airbnb (+ slideshow).
The studio was tasked with creating a minimal interior that would cover the needs of two guests staying through the home rental website, which is rapidly gaining popularity in the city according to the firm.
The 30-square-metre flat features a single main room and a separate bathroom divided by a structural wall. Rather than rearranging the layout, Position Collective decided to design a furniture system that would make the most of the existing space.
The studio created a plywood storage unit that features detachable shelves and pegs that can be reconfigured as needed by the flat's owner, and by visitors.
"The idea of the plywood wall is to have a modular system with adjustable shelves for different local Hungarian art and design pieces, books, home accessories that can colour the space, and are unique for foreigners but are at the same time functionally readjustable if needed," said Position Collective CEO Bence Simonfalvi.
A bed platform is attached to the wall panelling, and includes an indented section to store the mattress and bedding. A mesh curtain separates the sleeping unit from the kitchen, which features concealed units and a small circular dining table with three overhead striped pendant lights.
Visitors can store their clothes on green wall-hung metal railings placed opposite the sleeping area, which also includes built-in cupboards and storage shelves adjacent to the steps that lead up to the bed. In the bathroom, the studio retained the original entrance but added a sandblasted glass window between it and the main room of the apartment.
"The budget was quite low so we optimised the cost of the renovation to keep it low and invested more in furniture and accessories," said Simonfalvi.
Interior designer Maayan Zusman also designed bespoke carpentry to create hidden storage space for a 60-year-old apartment in Tel Aviv, and Built Architecture installed a long oak cabinet to create a "spine" for a Barcelona apartment renovation.
Airbnb was founded by Rhode Island School of Design graduates Joe Gebbia and Brian Chesky in 2008, and has since expanded to include listings in 190 countries.
In an interview with Dezeen, Chesky explained that the pair's business venture wasn't taken seriously by Silicon Valley at first, partly because it was founded by designers rather than engineers.
Designer Ilse Crawford has said that Airbnb is changing attitudes towards design by allowing people to experience stylish interiors firsthand, rather than through magazines or websites.
