Sabine Marcelis's Rotterdam loft is a living laboratory of evolving design

Designer Sabine Marcelis and her architect partner Paul Cournet continuously reconfigure their 500-square-metre loft in Rotterdam's Coolhaven district, a former paper factory and bank. The home features Marcelis's self-designed resin bathtub and a 2.96-metre-tall lava lamp for British brand Mathmos. An Osaka sofa by Pierre Paulin (1967) was recently reupholstered from pink to beige. A 10-metre-wide curtain printed with notebook pages by Berlin designer Ehsan Morshed Sefat sections off the living area. Custom steel bookshelves by local designer Phil Proctor and a conversation pit-style sofa furnish the space. The couple, who have two young children, plan to expand into the ground floor for a guest room. Marcelis and Cournet recently collaborated on set design for the Cartier jewellery exhibition at the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) in Melbourne, Australia, her first exhibition design project. They previously co-created scenography for the Alula lounge at Milan design week 2024. Photography by Letizia Cigliutti.